Taking a Cue from Nature

Much of Feng  Shui comes from studying the way Nature works and utilizing the lessons learned.  So what does Fall tell us?  I want to suggest several things you can apply to your own life.

First, Nature is slowing down. She is bestowing her bounty on us during harvest. Lessons: First, slow down. speed:slowWe are so overloaded in a culture that pushes us to speed up faster and faster. You are a human being, not a human doing. You’ve heard that many times, but have you tried it for yourself?

Second: take gifts from the sumner and preserve them for the winter. Review your business. Take a look at your finances, especially your income and out expenses. Are they in balance? Make lists of things that need to be renovated, repaired or redecorated during the quiet time of winter. Get the items needed for your favorite hobby, i.e. scrapbooking. What about reviewing your photos with an idea of giving photo books for Holliday gifts?

More from Nature: Leaves are turning the most gorgeous colors. fall colorRich and deep.  Earth colors and rich metal colors of gold.. In Feng Shui, we use the Earth colors for grounding, and the golds speak of multidimensional wealth.  What are the portions of your life that are grounded, rich and vibrant? This is a time too look, reflect and evaluate such things both in your personal and your business life.

For me, fall has a bittersweet quality to it. I’m sad to see Summer pass. I’m reminded that change is the only constant in our world. Things are dying, and it’s time to let go. It’s time to slow down and reflect and meditate.  What are you holding onto that can be let go?

In many parts of the US, there is an ‘Indian Summer’ a time when nights are cool, days are perfect. It often shows up after a cold spell and is sort of a seasonal curtain call of summer passing. That brings me back to the bittersweet quality of Fall.

What is the shape that sums this all up? The symbol we see that even predates the Bagua energy map? It is the Tai Chi – the Ying Yan symbol where dark gives way to light giving way to dark. yinyangWhen it would appear that light is to become complete, a speck of darkness appears. And as the change continues, the dark begins to take over.  We see this in the natural world, where there is never a sharp delineation of dark or light. Rather one edges the other out only to have the reverse happen. Can you see this happening in your own life? Your own career?

And the takeaway? Harvest all the good things that have happened this year, and write them down. See how they contain the seeds for your future growth, future prosperity, further happiness. Nurture these during the coming months and be ready to plant them in new, fertile ground next spring.

THE WAR ON CHRISTMAS HAS BEEN WON!

It’s New Year’s Day and in my neighborhood. like the greater part of Ashland, Christmas decoration are being taken down. Those, of course, that were not removed the day after Christmas. So the politically correct forces can declare an open victory against the religious aspects of this holiday. Many folks got their lights and geegaws up right after Thanksgiving, in order to match Walmart and Target. The expansion of the Christmas buying season has trumped anyone who found Christmas to be the celebration of the birth of the Christian’s Son of God. Material acquisition has trumped inward reflection and gratitude.

The next target? Obviously, the only one left! Thanksgiving. Madison Ave has yet to figure out how to Sarah Palin Turkey 5commercialize the bird, however, Sarah Palin did a pretty good job on it not so long ago. It’s interesting to note that neither the Jewish High Holy Days, nor those venerated by  Buddhists have fallen to the venal appetites of those who have elevated Money above Existence, Spirit, God or whatever such a power means. Does anyone see any human arrogance is such a path? What does it have to do with Nature and the real world? Not much , if anything, from this man’s point of view.

2014 is The Year of the Horse – and Chinese astrologers suggest we can expect Mother nature to step up larger and more dramatically as we keep climate change under wraps and in denial. Gaia is pissed off. Oh well, time for the Koch brothers to sell more Coors!

Fall Colors and You

Here in the Pacific Northwest we have had a spectacular Fall. The variety and intensity of colors has been beyond magnificent. I found myself resonating with the golds and the reds against the green backgrounds. Have you resonated in this way?  If you have, you may been learning what colors make you feel positive, happy.  If the golds and the reds lift your spirit, consider your wardrobe. How much of it reflects those colors?  If they don’t, not to worry. Review the year and think of the colors in which season got you stoked – and then take a look at your wardrobe: how much were those colors reflected?  What you’re doing is learning the Feng Shui use of color which can help you realize you most effective, most nourishing way to dress. Play with this and let me know what you discover.

Unusual Beauty/Changeable Chi

It’s strange to me how we, mostly in the West, cannot appreciate what Nature does without our help. This fall, particularly here in the Northwest, has been especially color rich. Such glorious combinations speak of positive chi, but chi of a different nature. Fall is a time of transition with a glorious procession of events: first the leaves put on their spectacular show and then they reverse place – from on the tree to on the ground.  They present us with another incredibly wonderful picture of beauty, HOWEVER We then get out the rake or blower and get all those pesky leaves out of sight. How bizarre!   Now there is another beauty – and more chi. Were we sensitive to what nature has to tell us, this is a time to take another look at our life, to quiet ourselves and to go inside. I suggest we can learn much by paying attention of the every changing chi in the progression of the seasons.  Remember, I Ching says everything is always in a state of constant change. [And Feng Shui developed from the principles contained in the I Ching.] Let that change in and let you life be filled with the richness of the colors of fall.