The Turning of Autumn: A Welcoming

1. Nights become longer than days, and the late summer rains bleed into autumn keeping the air damp and sticky. When the rain stops and clouds clear, somehow the stars feel closer. My new apartment presses against the mountain range to the west keeping it cool and breezy, blowing away the day's humidity. Autumn has always been my favorite time of year--my birthday, Halloween, Samhain. The season of harvest, the season of change. The season to cast spells and burn sigils. The season to conjure magic and experience its unfolding. 

2. The letter arrived at the tail end of August while I away. I felt it coming. The writing had been on the wall all year. My job at the University here in Thailand for the past 3.5 years finally came to an end. What started as a dream job that I designed from scratch with little to no guidance degraded over the years into something I really could no longer stand--due to factors that I will not go into here. It was good for a long while until it wasn't. A blessing thrust upon me by the universe at the perfect moment. 

3. With my job behind me, my world burst open again. I will be taking this next year to fully focus on writing, reading, and ritual--all things that nourish my creativity. My first novel is still on submission which feels surreal and exciting, but also unnerving--as each stage of this process has been. The traditional publishing path, as I've mentioned before, is arduous and long. But for me, it has been a dream, and slowly, step by step, it is happening. My agent is communicative and wonderful and is fully invested in getting my book matched with the right editor / publisher. I thought about putting the second novel aside to focus on the next big thing, but I don't need to do that. I can span my writing life across many projects now. I will not squander this moment but embrace it fully and squeeze as much out of this year as I can. 

4. No longer being confined to place I began to dream about slow travel again. Chiang Mai will still be my homebase as I do have an apartment and life here, but I'll be coming and going with more fluidity. Tuning in to that subtle tug that has pulled me across the world, placing me exactly where I need to be. Next stop: Sulawesi, Indonesia--snorkeling and aliens and ancient rituals. I have a lot of new experiences lined up for this year. This is only the beginning. 

5. Autumn--when the road to everywhere opens and the possibilities feel endless. I welcome all the changes and the darkening of the days. A time of year when the sky becomes clearer and so do I. 

What does autumn represent to you? How do you welcome unexpected change into your  life? Do you embrace it or resist it? 

This post has been more of a check in with myself--where I am and where I'm going. Autumn book recommendations, slow travel and the writing process, and this blog's 10 year anniversary (TEN YEARS!) are in the works. See you all under the darkening sky.