By Cathy Hird
The calendar and the weather have gifted us with one last week of summer. With school not starting until next week, children and teachers have this extra space. We can all put off the regular routines of meetings and fall programs, and enjoy warm days. Even if we have to go to work this week, evenings will be comfortable for gardening, barbequing or just relaxing.

September is, however, the most purpose-filled month of the year. I am a little afraid that we will pack all the start-up events into a shortened period. Back in June when I was setting up fall meetings, this week was ignored and everything was pushed into the 22 days that follow Labour Day.

In the summer with people taking holidays, it is hard to get everyone together for an event or a meeting. With most holidays are over, September is the perfect month for consultations and planning. It is the time to get new projects rolling. All the clubs start up. This month, our whole society will set new goals for learning, for exercise, for the workplace. It is time to get moving. We cannot miss the energy of September if we want our organizations to flourish and our work to be productive. And this year, we have just three weeks to get everything up and under way.

Tired yet? Worried it won't all get done? Anticipating the stress?

Because we have important goals to accomplish, September puts pressure on us. Every year, it is hard to find a balance between busyness and rest in September. This year even more than others, with all the start-up packed into three weeks, it will take attention to plan our days so that we nurture our whole self and keep stress at bay.

One way to keep balanced is to get out our calendar and mark off spaces for coffee with friends, time to relax, evenings to be outside. That will help. But I am thinking that finding balance does not have to be that much work, shouldn't be that much work. If we open ourselves to this month, can we find the ways in which September in Ontario calls us to enjoy life and to appreciate the world around us?

Summer's blue sky and green are rejuvenating, but the colour of fall is beautiful. Yes the hint of red in the maple leaves means winter is not far off, but in the meantime, we look out at hills that grow more glorious every day. There is a rich earthy smell in the woods. The air is cooler at night. And soon, a walk among the trees will include the swish of new fallen leaves.

September gives us spectacular tastes. The crunch of a newly picked apple is sweet and sharp. New potatoes and carrots have little in common with the previous year's harvest we had to eat in July. Corn on the cob is a time sensitive treat.

p>With warm evenings, we can sit out in the yard or in a park. As the month progresses, we have to add a sweater, but still we can rest outside and watch the sun fall to the horizon. We sit and bask in the colours of sunset.

Fall's air is also full of sound. Wind blows, and we hear the brush of leaves. Birds gather. They rise in a rush of wings and settle again on the wires. They tweet and chatter as if sharing news of the past summer and the route they are about to follow. Listening to them, watching as they rise together, swoop and circle on the wind, hide again among the leaves can lift the heart. Yes, it means we will soon live with the silence of January, but today and all this month, the energy and excitement seems joyous.

This month, while work and school provide pressure and stress, the days of September call us to notice the life of the world around us. The gifts of this month feed our body. The same gifts can nurture our spirits and help us to find balance in each day.

Cathy Hird is a farmer, minister and writer living near Walters Falls.