Leaves and Snowflakes

The air is brisk, the leaves are changing color, and the smell of leaves and pumpkin spice fill the air.  Autumn is here.  Though I love summer and all the warm weather it brings, there is something undeniably wonderful about fall and the upcoming winter magic to come.  To me, fall is a time of such beauty and coziness.  The world becomes a rainbow of colorful leaves, the air is a bit more brisk so you have to wear more cozy layers and cuddle closer to those you love, and the smell of the air is intoxicating.  The air smells of the lovely aroma of leaves, pumpkin spice, apple cider.  Something very awe-inspiring about fall is that even though it is a time of impending death for many plants and all the leaves of the trees, it is yet so incredibly beautiful.  It’s a lesson to us that even death can be beautiful.  It’s all a part of the miracle of life.  It may be the end of this life, but it’s the beginning of another.  When the winter comes, the leaves are gone and the world is so silent and seemingly dead, but spring always comes without fail, bringing color and life to the world once again. 

Even though I dislike how cold winter can be and get disheartened by all of the snow after a while, winter still holds a special place in my heart.  Winter is another cozy time, and it brings the wonderful holiday of Christmas.  Christmas is my very favorite day of the year.  It’s a time of family, food, coziness, and magic (all of my favorite things)!  Even as a kid, Christmas has never really been about the presents.  It’s always been about the excitement and magic of being together as a family and taking part in fun traditions together.  Christmas brings such joy to many people’s hearts, and that makes my heart warm and unbelievably happy.  This magic is such a blessing.  The whole world we live in is such a blessing. 

Sometimes we forget to take a moment to truly appreciate how blessed we are, so the holidays of fall and winter (Thanksgiving and Christmas) remind us of our blessings and restore the magic feeling of awe that we felt as children.  As the leaves begin to fall and the snow begins to drift upon the ground, take a moment to watch this miracle of life.  These events may happen every year, but every year is unique.  And there is always something new and astounding to discover on this beautiful planet we call home.  

Eternal Life

I was scrolling through quotes in Pinterest, which I do on a pretty regular basis since I’m a quotes nerd, and I found this poem by Mary Elizabeth Frye, pictured below.

I really love this poem.  It's so beautiful and can provide comfort to those who have lost a loved one.  More than just being beautiful and providing comfort, this poem also perfectly translates my beliefs when it comes to death and the afterlife.  I believe that those who have died may not be here in their former physical form anymore, but they will live on forever in spirit.  Bodies may die, but souls live forever.  Souls can take any form, so even though the ones we love won’t be there in their former physical form anymore, we will still be able to see them in other forms.  In sunlight, in the wind, in birds, in trees, in any number of living things. 

Some people may think that this idea is absurd and that once a person dies they are completely dead, but I disagree.  I’ve had a number of loved ones die, and for every person that has died, I have heard my family and friends tell experiences of seeing these people in other forms after they’d died. Some were seen in dreams, some in whispers in the wind, and others just in the feeling of a spirit beside them.   One experience that particularly touched me was the experience that my mom and dad experienced after my uncle Randy died. 

My mom and dad were in their pool, trying to relax after the stress of the news and the preparation for the funeral, when all of a sudden a Monarch butterfly fluttered down to touch my dad and then flew away.  As the butterfly flew away and moments after, both my mom and dad were silent, both somehow knowing that the butterfly was Uncle Randy.  His spirit lives on and comforts his loved ones.  What makes me believe this encounter even more is that a couple days before this I had a similar experience.  I was feeling stressed out from both the news of Uncle Randy’s death as well as my new job I had acquired, so I decided to take a walk.  The walk wasn’t helping at first, however.  Unhappy, fearful thoughts fluttered through my head, until I saw a Monarch butterfly sitting by the side of the road.  It was strange because he didn’t appear to be injured yet he was sitting there so nicely and barely even moved when I reached down to pet his wing.  It was such a beautiful experience, and after hearing my mom and dad’s story about their butterfly, I knew that the butterfly I encountered must have been Uncle Randy, too.

I sometimes don’t know what I believe in because it truly is hard to believe in things when you live in a world of such uncertainty, but one thing is certain: I believe in the everlasting soul.  I believe that after people die, their souls live on for eternity.  They become the whisper in the wind, the butterflies in the flowers, the gentle autumn rain, and the tree softly creaking in the breeze.  Their souls live on in the spirit of nature, and in our hearts, forever.