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The air is turning crisp, the leaves are hinting at gold, and that familiar, comforting urge to slow down and get cosy is settling in. There is a seasonal shift that invites us to swap light summer evenings for warm mugs, soft layers, and flickering candles. If you are ready to embrace the shift in the weather, you are in the right place.
Fall / autumn is a beautiful time of year. I know it is a very popular season! I sure do love the autumn season.
Read on for 7 wonderful ways to welcome fall and celebrate the autumn season.
Autumn is Time for Balance
A key part of seasonal living is observing what is happening in nature, particularly with light and dark cycles.
Depending on the latitude of where you live, we will experience roughly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. With light and dark in balance, we are called to find balance within ourself and our external world.
Seasonal living in autumn shows us we are entering the season of reflection. It is a time to let go, just like the trees begin let go of their leaves.
Throughout autumn, some trees begin to let go of their leaves to preserve and store energy from the sun.
Autumn Themes
Even though it is getting cooler, autumn is still a wonderful an opportunity to connect to nature.
At the beginning of autumn, we prepare for cozier days than lively summer where we had longer hours of light.
Honour and live in harmony with the new season emerging. We begin to turn inwards
Ways to Celebrate Fall / Autumn
I have children so I love to make seasonal traditions as a family. It’s wonderful to engage kids in the cycles of nature.
Here are ways to celebrate the arrival of autumn.
1. Baking Bread
Harvested grain is historically associated with Autumn. Bake a crusty loaf of bread to celebrate the Autumn Equinox. The smell of fresh bread wafting through the house is delightful.
Then once it is ready, load up on butter and honey and eat while warm. Yum!
If you want to get into baking bread, I highly recommend this Danish Whisk. it makes mixing flour and water so much easier than a wooden spoon. I was gifted one and it’s such a gamechanger for mixing gluggy flour and water. I task my daughter with this part and she loves using it.
Here is my cosy autumn simple bread recipe.
2. Brew Apple Cider
I’m talking about making a non-alcoholic version of apple cider. Although I’m pretty sure apple cider is usually non-alcoholic in North America.
Here in Australia apple cider is more common as a fizzy alcoholic beverage. When I lived in Canada I remember being at a family festival and thought how wild it is they were serving apple cider! But turns out it was a delicious warm beverage.
Apples are very symbolic of Autumn. So get some brewing in the slow cooker and add in a dash of cinnamon and oranges. Another delicious smell to waft through your home! And it gives the cosiest scent to suit the crisper mornings that are beginning. Get my full hot apple cider recipe.
3. Harvest
Autumn is a time for the final harvest in parts of the world where winter is so cold very little grows. It’s more moderate where I live, but there are still some vegetables that I won’t sow in autumn. It’s time to take the final harvest for these vegetables.
Enjoy a wonderful meal with your final harvest. Perhaps also you might like to pickle or store your haul!
4. Abundance
One of the key themes for autumn is abundance. We can feel an immense gratitude as we reflect on the energetic season of summer. Then autumn arrives and we start to slow down, just as nature does. Rather than clinging to high energy, we focus on abundance.
I think of sitting on a porch, breathing a sigh and having that great feeling of satisfaction after a busy day. That’s what it feels like once summer is done and autumn begins. Slow down, but with a full heart.
5. Eat Seasonally
While I encourage eating local and in season year-round, a conscious change of your food from summer produce to autumn harvest embraces the cyclical change.
As covered above, apples and bread are very symbolic of autumn throughout history.
In your part of the world, pay attention to what is in season. If bananas are no longer grown in the region that you live in, it’s time to stop eating them. You are sending the wrong signal to your body by not eating food grown in the season you are in.
To trust that you are eating seasonally, is to eat what is grown locally. Wander your local Farmers Market to discover what is in season where you live. Imported fruit or vegetables tells you that the light and temperature in your current climate is not supportive of growing that fruit and therefore, it’s not the season to eat it.
Other common foods you will see associated with celebrating autumn include:
- Apples
- Pumpkin
- Cranberries
- Grains
- Carrot
- Chickpeas
- Rocket
6. Fire
Fire has long been a way to celebrate the changing of the seasons.
The exciting news of autumn beginning is that fire is also used to keep you warm!
I do not use overhead lights after sunset in my home. We had guests over at the end of last year for dinner, and they turned them on and I almost hissed it was so startling. We use only lamps or candles after sunset.
To connect with the element fire in your home, use only candles at night time. I love beeswax candles. Candlelight after sunset is a nice way to romanticise the season!
7. Collect Autumn Items
Collecting Autumn items is a great way to celebrate if you have young children. Leaves, branches and the like all make great nature craft!
You might like to read my post on how to romanticise your life this autumn as we deepen into season.
In Closing
Wishing you a charming autumn season!
Thank you for stopping by my cost cottage.
Read about my slow living in summer reflections as the seasons change. The next big seasonal event will be celebrating the arrival of winter.
Let me know in the comments if you do anything to celebrate.
Until next time!
Rachael x
