Autumn Song

One of the beauties of living in the Midwest is the change of seasons. Fall for me is my favorite season of all; you smell the crispness in the air, the leaves changing color and the beautiful sunsets.

Van Morrison wrote "Autumn Song" on the album Hard Nose the Highway

Leaves of brown they fall to the ground
And it's here, over there leaves around
Shut the door, dim the lights and relax
What is more, your desire or the facts

Pitter patter the rain falling down
Little glamor sun coming round
Take a walk when autumn comes to town

Little stroll past the house on the hill
Some more coal on the fire will do well
And in a week or two it'll be Halloween
Set the page and the stage for the scene

Little game the children will play
And as we watch them while time away
Look at me and take my breath away yeah

You'll be smiling eyes beguilding
And the song on the breeze
Will call my name out and your dream

Chestnuts roasting outside as you walk
With your love by your side
The old accordion man plays mellow and bright
And you go home in the crispness of the night

Little later friends will be along
And if you feel like joining the throng
Just might feel like singing Autumn song
Just may feel like singing Autumn song

You'll be smiling
Eyes beguilding
And the song on the breeze
Calls my name out in your dream

Chestnuts roasting outside
As you walk with your love by your side
And the old accordion plays mellow and bright
And you go home in the crispness of the night


Richard R. Powell's book Wabi Sabi Simple: Create Beauty, Value Imperfection, Live Deeply
summarizes the changes and life simply by saying "wabi sabi nurtures all that is authentic in life by acknowledging three simple realities: nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect."

As we progress in our training, we go through changes as well. The first class, the first month, the first year and suddenly it has been 20 years. The annual cycle of executing the techniques during Kan Geiko (Winter Training) and as we cover all of the Kihon Waza techniques, we go through life's cycles.

Thoughts/questions to ponder:
Does your training or approach to training change with the seasons? If so, in what ways?
Have your techniques evolved since you started training in Aikido? If so, how and why?
How do you create balance for yourself in your training, studies, home or work?