AS we officially step into the golden embrace of autumn, the landscape of Belfast transforms. The air turns crisp and the trees wear their finest colours of amber and gold, reminding us of the natural beauty that surrounds us and the richness that lies within us.
This season of harvest is not just about gathering the fruits of the land, but also about recognising and cultivating the treasures within ourselves. It is a time to reflect on the gifts we already possess, the strengths we’ve nurtured and the potential that lies dormant, waiting for us to uncover it. I love the story of the famous De Beers diamonds – it’s a powerful metaphor for our inner journey.
A farmer sold his land in pursuit of a grander life, convinced that riches lay elsewhere. He embarked on a long and fruitless quest, searching far and wide for diamonds, unaware that the very ground he had abandoned was sitting on one of the largest diamond mines ever discovered.
This tale is a profound truth in life – often the wealth we seek externally is already within our grasp, if only we take the time to dig deeper, taking the time to quiet our minds, to pause, reflect, to learn a simple technique like mindfulness in order to dive deep into the source of our being, our true nature.
In the hustle and bustle of modern life, we are constantly drawn to look outside. We chase after success, recognition and material wealth, believing that happiness lies somewhere in the distant future, or in places beyond our immediate reach. But, as the great psychologist Carl Jung once said, "Who looks outside, dreams, who looks inside, awakes." True fulfilment does not come from the relentless pursuit of external goals but from the quiet realisation of the treasures we already carry inside us.
So this autumn, as the leaves fall and nature prepares for its quiet slumber, we are invited to do the same. Nature asks us to pause, reflect, and look inward. What dreams have we nurtured that are ready to come to fruition? What strengths have we overlooked that can now shine like diamonds? Like the farmer, we might discover that what we seek is not in some far-off land but right here, right now, within us, in the life we are already living.
I know from experience that it is easy to get caught up in the search for more for more success, for more validation, for more of what we think will complete us. I know because I was that person who suffered from the disease of More. Autumn reminds me, thank God, that just as the Earth has its natural cycles, so too do we. Now is the time to harvest our internal diamonds, to appreciate the abundance that is already ours, and to recognise that the diamonds we seek have been with us all along.
In the spirit of this season, let us reflect on the words of one my favourite Irish poets, Brendan Kennelly, who reminds us of the constant possibility for renewal and growth in his poem 'Begin'.
Begin again to the summoning birds,
To the sight of the light at the window,
Begin to the roar of morning traffic
All along Pembroke Road.
Every beginning is a promise
Born in light and dying in dark
Determination and exaltation
Of springtime flowering the way to work.
Begin to the pageant of queuing girls
The arrogant loneliness of swans in the canal
Bridges linking the past and future
Old friends passing though with us still.
Begin to the loneliness that cannot end
Since it perhaps is what makes us begin,
Begin to wonder at unknown faces
At crying birds in the sudden rain,
At branches stark in the willing sunlight,
At seagulls foraging for bread,
At couples sharing a sunny secret
Alone together while making good.
Though we live in a world that dreams of ending
That always seems about to give in
Something that will not acknowledge conclusion
Insists that we forever begin.
This autumn, as we watch the world around us shift, let us also begin again. Let us harvest the wisdom, strength and beauty that lie within us and, like the diamonds hidden beneath the Earth, let our inner light shine brightly.
