A Fall Equinox Reflection & Ritual: A crumb trail to humanity

Life is busy, so let’s do something practical with this Equinox.

Usually, this time of year I’m talking about releasing and letting go—just like the trees.

But this year… it’s been so hot. It still feels like late summer here, and I’m feeling more of a nudge to hang out with the feeling of abundance a little longer.

Fall is, after all, the season of harvest. Of gathering in. Of noticing what grew.

And maybe this is just another example of holding both. (A little wink back to my last Rest Note.)

One hand can be open to release—the goal that no longer fits, the thing that doesn’t serve the person we are today, this season of life, or maybe even just this week.

And the other hand can rest over our heart.

Receiving.

Noticing what is here.

Gathering up the little crumbs of joy and gratitude and letting them become something bigger.

The crumbs of joy

I recently came across Mary Oliver’s words about the “crumbs of joy,” and that phrase has stayed with me.

Because there is a lot of crud going on in the world.

And there are still crumbs of joy.

I don’t think we should let them stay crumbs.

What if we Noticed them? Amplified them? Shared them?

I had one of those moments recently in a place I wasn't expecting it—a customer service call.

I was calling about a charge that completely surprised me, and my immediate response was something like, Well, I’m not paying that.

Probably a little more assertively than I needed to say it.

I wasn't angry with the woman helping me. I was just caught off guard by the amount and reacting to what it meant for our family budget.

But she met my energy with such grace.

She asked me how my day was.

That was the first little shift.

I said it was going okay and asked about hers.

“Well, I just started my shift. You’re my very first customer,” she told me. And then she said something along the lines of, my day goes very well when my customers are calm.

And there it was.

Not in a shaming way. Just this tiny, gentle reminder that there was another human being on the other side of the call.

And it shifted me even more.

We had to wait for a few things while she helped me remove the pretty hefty fee, so we talked about the weather. I asked if she worked from home and she sighed and said she wished she did so she could spend more time with her family.

Wow. I feel that. Deep. Especially as I’ve been working away from home more this season.

And suddenly we were just two people.

Two women, somewhere very far apart, talking about our days and our families and trying to get through the work in front of us.

What started as a stressful phone call had somehow turned into this tiny moment of human connection.

And I don't know why that interaction made me so emotional. I literally cried after the call on my way to pick up my kids from school.

Maybe it was her kindness.

Maybe it was being reminded how quickly the energy between two people can shift when one person chooses softness.

Maybe it was that little moment of connection when she talked about wanting more time with her family and I thought, Me too.

Maybe it was simply remembering that we really are all people, doing the best we can.

And so, as you go about your day, maybe remember this:

Your calmness matters. Your kindness matters. Your energy can leave a lasting impression on someone you may never meet again.

Maybe that is one of the places I'm feeling abundance lately.

Crumbs leading us back to Humanity.

And what am I letting go of?

The idea that I can keep all the plates spinning.

Sometimes we just have to set some things down.

Not forever.

Just for now.

Life has rhythm. It is cyclical. The energy comes back around. There will be another season to tend to the things we can't tend to right now.

Sometimes we get to put something down, exhale, and trust that it can cycle back to us when the time is right.

A simple Equinox ritual

Instead of recording a new meditation for you this week, I’m putting that energy into our Fall Equinox Circle on Tuesday. But I still wanted to leave you with something simple to practice at home.

The Equinox is this beautiful still point in the seasonal wheel, when light and dark come very close to equal before the balance begins to shift again.

Light and dark. Both present.

There’s that theme again.

So place a hand over your heart, if that feels good, and simply ask:

What am I grateful for? What feels abundant? Where are my little crumbs of joy?

And then open your other hand:

What can I set down for now? What am I ready to let go of?

Maybe there is something in between, too. Something you don’t need to figure out or choose between just yet.

Just notice.

That can be your ritual.

You can light a candle, say a prayer, move your body or sit in stillness. Or you can do this while you’re walking the dog or washing the dishes.

It doesn’t have to be a whole thing.

I hope you find your own little still point of balance this Equinox, however that shows up for you.

And I'd really love to hear: Where are you holding both right now? Or what are you giving yourself permission to set down?

Comment below if you'd like to share. I really do love hearing from you.

Namaste,
Kinzie

REST AT HOME

Need something simple you can return to in your own time? A few things to read, listen to, or come back to when you need them:

→ “She Let Go” — a poem by Saphire Rose I’ve shared with my yoga classes every fall for years.

→ Mary Oliver + the crumbs of joy — the words that inspired part of this Rest Note.

→ Visit the Rest Library — free meditations, reflections, and practices for whenever you need a little place to land.