Fall is a season of change.  A new school year has begun.  The weather has shifted to become noticeably cooler along with the changing hues of the trees.   

Within the agrarian culture this time of year is cause for celebration.  The harvest of crops represents the culmination of a season of work, devotion, and continual care in tending to yield something to delight upon a fruitful end product.

There is a strategy for growing food systems called sustainable agriculture.  It’s a way of raising food that is healthy for consumers, doesn’t harm the environment, is humane for workers, respects animals, and supports and enhances communities in raising food.  

We could learn a lot from this!  It is a terrific approach to not only raising our children but to incorporate within our own lives as adults. The human spirit can be cultivated and tended to similarly and thus it can flourish so that we become more conscientious beings. 

All rules for life can be found in nature.  In teaching our kids to have a nurturing character, they can develop a compassionate heart.  People, big and small, will protect what they care about.  Teaching kids to love and care about their world helps develop a deeper appreciation of their individual impact on the world by their very own thoughts and actions.  

As we go through life, we travel at a hectic clip accompanied by the continual buzz from our electronic devices such as cell phone, i-pod, computer, television, car stereo, and car DVD player.  We wonder how we ever got through life without these modern conveniences, but we are over stimulated and wiped out by the end of the day.

Challenge yourself and your kids to get back to nature.  Enjoy a few minutes of peace without continual noise and all day long interruptions.  Take time to simply stop and look around at the world to see and hear the peaceful beauty of nature.

A great way to gain a deep appreciation of life is to get back to nature.  Awaken the heart and spirit through an awareness of all the wonders nature has to offer us.  Teach your children to be cognizant and engage in all that nature bestows upon us. Take notice yourself.

Seasons change and meld from one to another in preparation for the seeds to take root for next year’s crops.  In sowing the seeds of the spirit through appreciation and value of and for nature, we can inspire future generations…one breath at a time, one moment at a time, and just one person at a time.

QUOTABLE QUOTES

"There is always music amongst the trees and in the garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it." 

- Minnie Aumonier

“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” 

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better." 

- Albert Einstein

"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower." 

- Albert Camus

We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children. -Author Unkown

Shh...Listen to the sound of the Earth turning. -Author Unkown

“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.”

- Aristotle

Lana M. Saal, M.S., Manager of BPS’ Staff Wellness program holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition, Master of Science degree in Health Education, and is currently pursuing her Doctorate in Educational Leadership.  She has over 20 years of health and wellness work-life experience and can be reached at Saal.Lana@BrevardSchools.org