It’s my last day to prepare and pack for a teaching trip to Wisconsin, so of course my cat deliberately lies down on my laptop.  “Not so fast,” she says, voting with her body.  She could mean, “Hey there, not so fast– I get the sunny patch first.”  But I hear her say, “Not so fast— stop the frenzy, slow down a little.”

Yep, it’s yet another message to be present to myself, available to the moment, and open to inspiration as I go along.

For a month now, I’ve been receiving all kinds of guidance to take pauses and make space– and it’s HARD for me to trust it will be ok if I go slowly.  Just when culture tells me to ramp it up and go crazy getting ready for Christmas sales, autumn and my heart invite me to slow the pace, to soak in the beauty and meaning all around.  Not so fast.

—Melanie