Tag: seasons

Into A New Season

Between what was and is to come…

This is my favorite time of year. Autumn is slowly moving in, pushing summer out. Summer is holding on for dear life, as the winds of fall begin to move in. We see remnants of the summer fun all around us, as we start to breathe in the fresh air that comes with this new season. The trees hold onto their green, but there are hints of orange and yellow popping out as they begin the slow transition to the winter season.

I feel like life is somewhat like that. We hang onto those wonderful memories, lingering there in the sweetness. Perhaps we are sitting with not so good memories, and staying there longer than we should. I have come to believe the Holy Spirit wants to breathe in newness and freshness and move me into a new season. Isn’t that life?

One season after another. Summer beautiful and glorious and full of laughter and joy. Summer struggles and sadness and tears. And yet there is always a new season to follow.

Sitting outside this morning, I found myself drawn to this one particular tree. All the way at the top was this tiny little bird. He kept flying back-and-forth on this one branch. I wondered what he was doing way up there at the top of the tree. I wondered why God had me focused on such a tiny little creature.

And now the dew of a new season is washing over us. Windows are fogging over. The grass is moist in the morning as it is replenished miraculously. The pool has drawn it’s cover-up over it, resting through the harshness of winter to come. Everything around us seems to signal the beginning of something new, again.

Are you in the end of a season of your life? Where is God leading you to move away from? Maybe it’s a relationship that no longer has the same meaning it once did. Maybe it’s a community in which you are no longer thriving or a part of? Maybe a habit or behavior that has proven to cause more harm than to be good for you.

Where is the Holy Spirit whispering in your ear and drawing you into a new season. Are you hearing something that you’ve always desired to do, and never had the courage to step into? Is there a relationship that needs mending in order for it to thrive again? Is there a new relationship that may lead you on a path of serving your community in a new way? A relationship for you to pour love into another life? Is Yahweh asking you to read the Word and see something different in it than you have ever experienced before?

We often talk about these things in spiritual direction. Spiritual direction is where two people come together, with the Holy Spirit to process what one is hearing and what the Divine is calling them into. Sometimes we feel like we are stuck and we just can’t hear things quite so clear. It’s always good to have a second person walking that walk with you, especially someone with some experience at asking questions and helping you to hear. But if you don’t have a spiritual director, look for resources that would help you discern what this new season might look like. Find an honest friend who isn’t afraid to walk with you. And walk with the Divine into whatever is up next. For even in the routine, there can be newness. I encourage you to look for that.

Peace and grace be with you

As we begin to walk away from the warmth of the summer sun and step into the cool breeze of autumn, I encourage you to stop and breathe in the Holy Spirit and exhale out that which must be let go. Breathe in the sweet air that surrounds you, and breathe out that which has passed. Breathe in the newness of the day, and relax and release that which is past and no more.

Tags autumn, Bible, change, community, faith, fall, Fresh start, God, Holy Spirit, Jesus, lighter walk, new life, new season, pool, seasons, spiritual direction, summer

Aging in Grace Transformation Stories

Healthy Walking: Part 2, Take the Walk

Post author By Maggie Marcum
Post date August 22, 2026
No Comments on Healthy Walking: Part 2, Take the Walk

Previously, I wrote about my reframing walk and acceptance of who I am at this stage of my aging life. Walking is my healing grace. It’s where I meet The Divine for long conversations about my life, relationships, and my place in the world.

Into A New Season

I am fortunate enough to live in a town where I can walk to expansive neighborhoods, to the grocery store, or local restaurants. It is uplifting to stop at the outdoor market or roam through the little privately owned shops. Go local if you can and support struggling small businesses. Get to know the owners and learn their story.

I remember growing up in Germany and on Saturdays my mom and I would take off for the bakery or for the little shops around where we lived. I’ll always have a tender spot for Saturdays and cream puffs. As a teenager we always ate in little restaurants and would pop in and out of the shops-sometimes just exploring what was new and plotting what to save our babysitting money to buy. I still love browsing through the small shops as if walking in a museum, enjoying creations…that I can pick up!

My walking always leads me to thinking about where I am going, or where I am leaving. Frequently I find myself discussing this with The Divine and apologizing for mistakes and seeking forgiveness. I pray for help and wisdom to transition from one season to another.

So often we look back on our life and list our regrets. We can reflect on our years of living and be flooded with positive, or negative memories. As I walked through the neighborhood near the apartments where I live, I saw beautiful grand homes. It made me sad to think of what I had “lost” for various reasons, including some bad financial decisions I made. I no longer own a house as a result of my choices and trusting some people whom I should not have. I have said for years that I “lost” everything in those unstable times. I used to think I was such a loser and I lived with shame and embarrassment and a sense that I had squandered what God had provided.

I want to reframe that story and to now simply say: “I no longer have those things. They were season in my life that came to an end.” I will likely never own a home again, unless something miraculous happens. And that’s OK. I was a little bit of a nomad growing up – moving every two or three years and I think I have continued that pattern for most of my life. Now it’s renting instead of owning, which gives me flexibility. It may not be as economically sound as some of my homeowner friends tell me, but that’s alright. This is the season in which I am living. I am part of a community that includes folks who have made the decision to live like me and it is kind of fun to share our stories of homeowner trappings and relief!

Lean into being healthy by taking care of your heart and soul. Find the process and place where you connect with The Divine and build new life-giving patterns. For me, this summer that has been water. I am blessed to have a pool in our apartment complex and I get to spend a lot of time just soaking in the water, looking up at the clouds and reimagining the stories that they tell. Did you ever do that as a kid? Do it again! Lay down and look at the images of the clouds and let God unfold a new story for you. Never lose that child-like nature that we’ve been given.

Keep seeking replenishment, refreshment, and renewal. Be open to the change and growth that is awaiting.

I encourage you to reframe the way you look at your life and instead of losses and mistakes, maybe we can just look at it as the seasons of our life and be content with that. Seasons bring ends and they bring starts. Seasons are letting go and grabbing onto the unknown.

Hopefully, we can look back and bring joy and peace into past painful times, and know that God has repurposed those times for good. They are just times, but not wasted times. If we look at them as times of growth, and opportunities to expand our world, then we have real life. May it be so for you. May you be free of regrets and “should-haves” and refreshed in a new season of what the Creator has provided for today.

In humble peace.

Tags change, clouds, forgiveness, lighter walks, loc, retirement, seasons, The Divine, walking

Transformation Stories

Building New Connections

Life is full of changes. Having lived a few decades now, I have traveled many pathways. Some that were forced on me and others I chose. Some were easy and others not so easy. Each took time to find a way to settle into new patterns.

These changes can take a toll on us mentally, spiritually, emotionally, and even physically. We may need to shut down for a little while and sit in the midst of what was, what is, and what is to come. There is a period of grieving the connections that no longer exist. There may be a period of sitting and wondering and praying about the lessons learned. These are the building blocks of our lives and how we strengthen the foundation of who we are for the next step.

And then there is deliberately stepping out of our comfort zone into something new and perhaps a little uncomfortable. It is hearing that mystical voice that says “Go.” It is faith to trust that in following the Divine, it somehow works out.

Even when we find ourselves settling into a new community, there may be a period of timidness as we wonder if this is where we will fit next. If we have been wounded by a community, especially a spiritual community, it may take longer to trust what feels right. Do we dare make new connections? What if trust is broken again? We wait anxiously for signs of pending betrayal.

What about those relationships that we have left behind? Will any of them continue? Or will people forget us and just move on because we’re no longer a part of whatever that program or life was? Will we forget?

Will friendships that we thought were lasting, simply dissolve away? These are the seasons of our life which we flow in and out of. And it is a natural part of living. What do we do when the things we did are no longer what we do?

Being connected and being part of community is central for us of humans to thrive. God saw that in the creation story as humans developed relationship with their creator.

“Let’s see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out… spurring each other on.” Hebrews‬ ‭10‬:‭24-25 MSG‬‬

Tags change, community, friendship, relationships, seasons

Boomer Living Coaching Tips and Exercises Living Loving Serving

A Season of Purpose

Living with purpose isn’t about how much we do. It is NOT about making ourselves feel better or relevant. Living with purpose is about having a heart for others that compels us to serve our brothers and sisters. Purpose is the result of a changed heart that propels us into action, with little thought about what we get out of it. It is a heart that overflows with excitement to be there for another human—to share our love and our gifts that someone’s life too may be changed.

Tags boomer, ecclesiastes, gifts, give back, pass it on, prayer, purpose, seasons, service, single, skills, talents, turn turn turn