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Earth is the name given to the energy of Late Summer. In the yearly cycle, it is the short, transitional season between Summer and Fall—the season of the harvest. This season is a time of intense metamorphosis in Nature, a time of fullness and ripeness, richness and abundance. This is Mother Nature at her most bountiful—the days are warm, the nights are cool, and there is plenty of good food to eat. It there’s been a good harvest, we feel content and secure that we will be provided for in the Winter months ahead. This is the stillpoint, that rich moment of total perfection before the slow descent into Fall and Winter. It is like a sigh of contentment, the satisfaction that follows achievement, the security of abundance, peace, and plenty. We experience this energy in the middle of our lives—our "productive years," when we raise children or create a body of work, make a contribution to our field, or produce something tangible. We are more stable than in our youth; we create a home, a center from which to operate, and we harvest the rewards of our labors. This is a time of nurturing—a time when our thoughts turn to nurturing the next generation. It is no coincidence that this season is most closely associated with "Mother" earth—the primary nurturer is the Mother, and so we need to "mother" something at this phase of our lives. During this time we experience the pleasure of nurturing others and of being nurtured by the abundance we’ve created. We’ve learned how to transform our experience, energy, and ideas and make them manifest on the material plane. Activities
appropriate to the season include: finishing the projects begun in the
Spring; reaping the rewards for our labors; harvesting the fruits and
vegetables from our gardens; nurturing those around us with food, touch
and listening; making our homes more comfortable; and producing something
with our hands. DISCOVERING THE FIVE ELEMENTS
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