34 Comments

Lyndsay, reading this was just absolutely magical. Your words flowed over me and through me and deep into my soul. Since we’re both September souls, I also resonate so much with the energy of endings and beginnings at this time of year. It feels deeply spiritual to me and hopeful as we move slowly into the cozy, autumnal season.

Thank you for your ever-inspiring blessings of words and feelings, my friend. 🍁

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Ah thank you so much for reading Liz. And yes I am so happy to learn that you are a September (sister) soul and that you feel it all as deeply as I do. Sending much love to you for a gentle transition into the cosiness of the upcoming season. Thank you for seeing me and my words always, it means so much xx

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Beautiful! Happy birthday. I felt what you are describing when I was entering my 30s, and again now as I am entering my 40s. Thank you for articulating such complexity with such eloquence. 💗

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Ah thank you Jiling. I am so glad that my thoughts about this time of transition felt familiar, its lovely to know that we seem to be on a similar path. I am so glad all of my meandering musings made sense to you! xx

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Crying right now. 🥹 Gosh this chapter close is making my heart ache and also simultaneously bounce with excitement for our girls. I meant to select ‘all of the above’ in the poll but realised too late that it was an option!! 🙈

Your words always move me dear one xxxxx

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Ahhh yes I feel like tears about this shift is inevitable, it feels so tender and so unknown but also very exciting and wonderful for our big little girls. Ha no worries, thank you for your poll feedback, noted. Thank you for always being here to receive my words, it is so appreciated, I’m so glad they landed with you xx

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Thank you! ❤️

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Stunning as always! I’m feeling lots of anticipation for autumn as we will experience fall for the first time in two years. It feels much longer!! I am ready to say goodbye to Florida endless summer and embrace the changing weather and colder days 🤍

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Ah thank you for reading Emily. Oh I am so excited that you will get to experience autumn this year. I knew you were moving, but where are you moving to? Although endless summer sounds great in many ways, I think I would miss the seasons too much, in fact I would find it really difficult to orient myself, how have you found that being in Florida? xx

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We’ll be in upstate South Carolina! Gosh it has been hard and I did not expect it at all. It’s been the hardest part of settling here and a big part of why we want to move. We will be moving close to family but I realised that I need winter to feel normal in my body hahah xx

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Hi :) I ve never really thought a mono-season could cause such effects. I guess it all revolves around our need for changes x

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Hi :) I never really thought a mono-season could cause such effects. I guess it all revolves around our need for changes x

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Oh wonderful. So interesting that the seasonal aspect (or lack of it) has played such an important part in your experience of life and the change you wanted to move. Glad to hear you will also be close to family and yes I totally get that, just like the rest of the living world we need to rest in winter. Good luck for the big move! xx

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A beautifully crafted article about the shift from summer to autumn thank you.

Personally, I cherish both seasons, each holding a special place in my heart. Summer with warmth, abundance, exploration and celebration. Autumn reflecting, letting go, coziness and comfort!

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Thank you so much for reading and commenting. Ah yes, I think it is wise, and I love the qualities you enjoy in them both. I think it’s probably why I really love September, aside from it being my birth month (!), it often holds the best of late summer and autumn side by side and all at once xx

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What a wonderful read! Thank you for such a moving essay on this seasonal shift

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Ah thank you so much for reading Jo, I’m so delighted that you felt moved by my meanderings and musings! It feels like an exciting garden time coming up that I had never quite realised before xx

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I love that first picture, is it a snippet of your home? 😍x

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Ah thank you, yes it is our entrance which always feels like a welcome relief in summer but is very dark and cold in winter! xx

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Better take advantage of the sun season then ☺️xx

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I love the idea of summer as faded glamour transitioning into the crisp newness of autumn. 🥰 Wishing you a peaceful and happy time for your birthday and lots of love and strength for your daughter’s big transition. xx

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Ah thank you Victoria, I'm glad that idea resonated with you, as is so often the case, two contrasting things existing so closely together. Thank you so much for the early birthday wishes and supportive thoughts for our big upcoming transition! xx

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Oh I remember that first day of school. A tender time. Be gentle with yourself 💛

I love this transition into autumn and a second chance at a new year. September has always felt like more of a start than January, somehow.

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Ah yes I’m sure you do, it is a time of big shifts (internally and externally I am finding), thank you for the reminder to go gently.

And yes I love this transition too, the beginnings feel so right with the turn of the seasons. I am never ready for ‘new starts’ in January (though I also really like the feel of subtle beginnings around your birthday at Imbolc in a contrasting way!) love to you xx

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Fall in Minnesota is a spectacular season and I'm so looking forward to it all; cooler weather, the changing leaves, the shift to soups and slow braises, a cozy fire in the chilled morning to sip my coffee in front of, more hiking and time outdoors. As a parent of a grown man, your words brought back the acute tenderness of the first year of school, the excitement and trepidation, the joy of their face as they leap through the door at the end of a wonderful day, new friendships, new experiences. I might be many years past this time, but it still can rush back in my memory in a flash.

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Oh wow, autumn/fall in Minnesota sounds so magical. And you capture the loveliness of the season so evocatively, I love the hearty soul food of the cooler seasons. Your coffee by the fire sounds perfect and it’s even better when it means you can still spend lots of time outdoors soaking it all in. Ah thank you so much for sharing your memories of your son starting school, time takes on a very strange character as a mother, the days are long and the years are short, as they say! xx

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Your words are so, so beautiful Lyndsay. You capture everything exquisitely.

I am ready to say goodbye to the up and down summer we’ve had, and lean into the certainty of the cooling days that autumn brings. As he was too young to really enjoy it last year, I can’t wait to show my little one the crunching leaves, crisp blue skies, and vibrant colours of autumn. I’m planning to harvest a lot from the garden and make jams, pickles, and chutneys with him… I’m just so done with ‘summer’ pretending to be here!

Sending you lots of love with the nursery / school transition: a big moment!!

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Ah thank you so much Holly, that’s really kind of you.

Yes I know what you mean, I love that about autumn (and winter), that the expectations and therefore pressure feels lower. Oh your autumn plans with your son sound wonderful, I am sure he will love crunching leaves! How amazing to have so much to gather from the garden, what has been growing?

Thank you for the love, it is much appreciated, it does feel like a big shift is fast-approaching! xx

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We have grown so much! I think we’ve got turnips, beetroots, courgettes, and dwarf French beans ready for harvesting in September. Having only have balconies for the past seven years, I went a bit nuts in the veg patch, but I’m absolutely loving it.

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This is quite unbelievable. So exciting, did they all survive the slugs? We have had so many here. I am delighted to hear about your crop, keep us posted please! xx

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Our turnip leaves have been quite badly affected by caterpillars, so I’m not too sure what the roots will end up like. The peas were destroyed by caterpillars too! But I’ve been pretty obsessive with picking off the slugs, especially as they were enjoying my dahlia leaves too. Will indeed share the harvest on Notes!

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Oooo caterpillars too, it’s a minefield! Sounds like you have done pretty well though, well done you. Yes my sunflowers and dahlias became victims of slugs in the end, I managed to rescue one dahlia by keeping it in a pot! Look forward to your harvest news xx

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This is beautiful, & feels quite elegiac. You’re right, it is a gentle transition from summer to autumn. Still, as a summer lover, I find it a somewhat painful one. Perhaps my deep love of summer comes from being born at midsummer. Who knows! Anyway, I wish you a very happy early September birthday, and your daughter (and you!) an easeful transition into school life. Xx

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Ah thank you Annabel, I’m glad you found it that way. Ah yes, I can sympathise with the pain you feel at summer ending, there is so much to love about it. Also interesting to also have the link between your birth and favourite season. Thank you so much for your kind wishes dear A, love to you and your son for September starts too xx

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