Dear Friend,

The season is changing. What have you done to nurture yourself these past several months? It has been summer in my part of the world and moving into fall. 

Summers are a time for me to get caught up on my reading. I often have an idealistic vision of me sitting under a shade tree (mine is an Avocado Tree) sipping ice tea (which I do not actually even like! Ha! How is that part of my idealistic vision?) for hours on end entirely engrossed in a book… better yet, books. It does not actually look that way most times but I do tend to carve out more reading time in the summer, which I find so gloriously relaxing and nurturing.

My two favorite books this summer were:

1. Living Untethered: Beyond the Human Predicament by Michael A. Singer. I was feeling a great deal of stress in the first couple of months this summer and this book helped me put everything into perspective, to focus on the present moment, and to feel grateful for what is wonderful about my life. I am still reading it, actually, and savoring a few chapters each morning, right before my morning meditation. The combination of meditation and this book has been calming and nurturing to me, like a deep breath and a warm shawl on a winter night.

2. Cloud Cuckoo Land, a novel by Pulitzer-prize winning author Anthony Doerr. This is a magical book that links 5 characters who span eight centuries (15th century, present-day, and a 22nd century starship). It was hard to put down and I found myself more times than not living my idealistic idea of summer reading— curled up with the book for hours, sipping water (yep, just cannot enjoy ice tea) with our dog, Willow in my lap and our cat, Olive visiting from time to time. I relished every page, and I felt sad when it was over, like how it feels when a loved one is saying good-bye after a deeply satisfying visit.

I love summer and I am sad that it is winding down. At the same time, I know that the change of seasons is perfectly designed, one of the many transitions we experience in our lifetimes. If I trust that, I can acknowledge my sadness and feel grateful for the perfection of it, and look forward to what will appear this fall.

How have you spent this past season? What are you looking forward to in the next few months?

May you be nurtured by your activities and trust the perfection of the changing seasons.

Mary Mackenzie
CEO, NVC Academy
CNVC Certified Trainer