Some change happens loudly, like the roar and crash of a thunderous storm. The autumn leaves on a recent walk I took through Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden, however, reminded me of a different sort of change. Quiet, gradual, subtle then striking.  How does Mother Nature do that? How can the movement from a vibrant, growing season of green summer leaves to the withering, drying and dying time of release be so very beautiful? On my walk I carried my camera, just for fun on this ‘artist’s date’, but my heart felt a sense of loss as all in the garden seemed to be dying. I began looking intentionally for the beauty in that, surprised over and over at the paradoxical aliveness visible in the leaves, petals, grasses and pods that had already let go.

How is this a metaphor for spiritual transformation possible for us humans?

So, the practice I choose for today is appreciating the creative beauty in the quiet changes happening naturally, all in the letting go.