Autumn’s Invitation: Letting Go, One Leaf at a Time

I’ve been really called to walking in the woods lately — crisp air, damp moss underfoot, the smell of earth and rain lingering in the leaves. And everywhere I look: leaves drifting, conkers rolling, nature’s little symbols of release. It feels like this time of year quietly whispers, let go!

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I watched a single oak leaf swirl off a branch. It didn’t cling. It just surrendered and drifted. That small moment stayed with me. Because I realised — we humans are always clutching: memories, expectations, patterns, fears.

Autumn is nature’s ritual of release. Trees shed their leaves not out of despair but because it’s necessary. In letting go, they prepare for rest, for renewal, for what’s to come next.

So what if we took a cue from them?

Remember being a kid (and honestly, me again this weekend)— pockets full of leaves, conkers, acorns, bits of bark? I do. That joy of spotting a glossy brown conker, cracking open its spiky shell just so — it all felt magical.

Now, I see those same acts as rituals. Collecting nature’s little messengers — they’re not just stuff, they’re reminders:

• Conkers: seeds full of potential. Even when they fall, they contain life.

• Leaves: they change colour, fade, drift — and then they feed the earth beneath.

• Acorns, twigs, bark: reminders of growth, endings, and cycles.

These are small tokens of release. When we carry them home, press them in books, arrange them by the windowsill — we’re honouring that season of letting go inside us.

Every time I crunch through the leaves, I’m reminded of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutrā on aparigraha — non-grasping. Just like the trees, we’re invited to let go of what we no longer need, to loosen our grip. In that space, something more nourishing can take root. Letting go isn’t an ending. It’s an act of trust — in the cycles of nature, in ourselves, and in life’s quiet promise of renewal. And if you’d like some support in exploring these seasonal shifts for yourself, my classes, workshops and private sessions are all about creating space to move, breathe, and gently let go — together. Click here for details.