Fall is sexy. Now I know you're thinking how is fall sexy, summer with all the skin and the sun and the sand is sexy. Yeah, summer is sexy like how a Nikki Minaj or Rihanna is sexy..sexy by default with the over the top stuff. Fall is sexy like how a Halle Berry or Viola Davis is sexy...smoldering, intense, not over the top.
Think about it - fall brings us rich, deep colors in the leaves. Even the smells of fall - cinnamon, pumpkin, spice - they linger and provide warmth and depth as we partake of them.
Honoring fall this season is a perfect time for us to recommit to honoring our environment. Of all of the dimensions of wellness, I'll admit the environment is really one that gets less attention in my life. I'm using environment in a very expansive way - my physical environment of my immediate community, neighborhood, home, office, etc.
Fall is a perfect time to recommit to honoring your environment - even with all that have to do in our homes, communities, churches, mosques, sororities, etc. I know it's easy to roll our eyes and suck our teeth at the crunchy granola, food police, types among us who seem to love bees and trees, more than they love their neighbors. It was interesting listening to two gentleman on the train the Monday after the huge People's Climate Change march this past weekend. One of the men said, "It's a damn shame all them people marching in NYC walked past poor and homeless people while they talking about Climate Change". The other man said "Mfuhs (I ride the train in DC) will eff with some ozone and ish before giving an eff about me". I get it. Sometimes it does feel like the environment gets more play than humans (especially certain humans), but we can chew gum and walk at the same time.
Environment also means more than what some folk might like you to think. Yeah, the oceans and the forests are important, but so are the parks, and the backyards and the retention ponds that make up our daily environment.
This fall, I'd like to challenge all of the readers of this blog to spend some time in your environment. Brick city, rural road, suburban cul-de-sac, whatever the case may be. Re-connect to your hood, to your roads, to your sky - to all of the spaces and places that you frequent every day. Relish in all the ways that fall will change them.
While you are checking out your environment, also take some time to pop into a farmer's market in your area. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a great tool on their website that lists farmers markets all over the country, so if you are at home or doing some traveling - check out their site to find a farmer's market to visit.
http://search.ams.usda.gov/FARMERSMARKETS/
Lisa Coffman
