Summer is winding down, and along with a tinge of sadness in the air, there’s the excitement of autumn energies. Harvest in the gardens, fresh homemade salsa and pesto, and time to dive back into the creative projects that have been on hiatus during the more active, warmer months.

Coming out of the intense busy-ness that is my August, I feel drawn to inner work. I’m relishing the stillness, the contemplation, and the re-organizing of my goals and priorities. I’m figuring out how to balance activities that help me make a living with those that I do for fun – even if they cost money rather than bring it in. It’s an interesting conundrum. I need and want to devote my time and energy to those things that help support our family – particularly the ones I’m still nourishing, like my writing career – and yet there are other things I enjoy that also call for my attention, like performing, and volunteering in the Pagan and unschooling communities.

At the same time, I’m working through the next phase of my grief for my dear friend Jenn, who entered hospice care this time last year. I’m really missing Jenn a lot, and integrating the things I’ve learned from her and her journey of life and death. This work causes me to crave lots of down time. Some days I want to ditch the schedule and just walk on the beach by myself.

My parenting journey is also shifting and changing as the kids get older. Their needs are at once simpler, as they can do a lot for themselves, and more complex, as they seek guidance in learning to navigate their worlds as young adults. It’s all good, and I’m blessed to have two wonderful kids. Still, change means an adjustment.

It’s a lot of inner processing, even for an introvert.

Along the way, I’ve uncovered some fun reading to share with you. Enjoy!

Here’s a useful look at two different mindsets on life-long learning and success. Do you tend more toward a fixed mindset, or one of growth?

“Sit There, Then Do Something.” We need both stillness and action in our lives. An excellent perspective.

There are many different ways to learn and study. Some folks study how we study!

This article was one of the posts written just after Robin Williams died. Very intense and poignant. Warning: there is some strong language.

Here’s an article about the biggest SCA event (historical re-enactment) in the U.S. I’ve attended once, and this post had me cracking up laughing. Another prolific swear word warning. I guess that’s a thing this week.

A well-written and engaging article on unschooling in a fairly mainstream magazine. Woo hoo! Here’s another positive unschooling article, from a newspaper in Montreal.

Enjoy your weekend!