“it’s such a beautiful idea: to have your favorite moment be the moment right in front of you. looking back, that’s all I ever wanted. for the best part of my life to always be the present.”
-Caroline Kaufman
The above quote is an excerpt from one of my favourite poems. It speaks to how the author could never pick a favourite season as a child because as each season began, it brought its own magic that she would fall in love with. (Side note – this poem was from a book called When the World Didn’t End: Poems by Caroline Kaufman– highly recommend it!). I also love the changing of seasons, they always feel quite magical to me. And what better time to practise some new, fun mindfulness activities?
Lately I’ve been setting the intention to savour the moment more, and there is no better time to practise this than during the changing of the seasons! Savouring the moment means intentionally slowing down and being present with the things we enjoy. It’s recognizing all the small things that bring us joy and taking time to express gratitude for them instead of constantly thinking of the next thing, and the thing after that.
Fall is now upon us, and I thought it would be fun to think of different ways we can savour this colourful season! A type of seasonal bucket list if you will. While I highly recommend that you create your own list, I’ve provided you with some fun mindfulness activities specific to this season. But before we dive into that, let’s first take a look at why this can be beneficial.
Why Practise Mindfulness?
I’ve already written an introductory post about mindfulness, so for the sake of this post, I will keep things simple and just give you the cliffs notes:
- Mindfulness teaches us acceptance, awareness and deep presence.
- Mindfulness is a great tool for managing anxiety as it teaches us to be fully in the now, instead of focusing on past blunders or upcoming situations that might trigger our anxiety.
- Mindfulness teaches us to become more attuned to our bodies and emotions, which is imperative to emotion regulation and healing.
- Mindfulness helps us to make the most out of the good moments in life.
- There are a ton of fun mindfulness activities we can practise to reap its benefits!
Fun Mindfulness Activities to Savour the Fall Season
The seasons offer us so many great opportunities for being present and connecting with our senses. One of my favourite ways of practising mindfulness is through connecting with the 5 senses senses. Our senses are directly connected to our emotional brain, which means they are a great tool for fostering positive emotions. Luckily, the seasons offer us an abundance of sensory input – there is just so much to see, hear, smell, taste and touch with each new season. Here are some fun mindfulness activities to help you connect with your senses and make the most of this beautiful season!
Admire All the Colours
Take a walk or a drive specifically to check out all the changing colours in the trees. Bonus points if you take a festive fall beverage with you and create a Fall-themed playlist to listen to while you walk or drive.
Wear Cozy Fall Clothes
I’m talking soft, warm layers here. If you’re a flannel fan, this is your season! Wrap yourself up in that cozy scarf, sweater or shacket. Really focus on the coziness and warmth of the fabric against your skin.
Listen to the Sounds of Nature
Get out in nature, get comfy on a picnic blanket and really tune into the sounds that are specific to Fall. Listen to the sounds of this season, such as feet crunching in the leaves, wind blowing through the trees and birds calling to each other.
Discover Your Signature Fall Beverage
Is it a pumpkin spice latte? Hot apple cider? A London Fog or Chai tea latte? On the journey to discovering your favourite Fall drink, make sure to really be present with this experience. Notice how the steam feels against your face, smell the spicy aromas, feel the warmth as the drink hits your tongue and notice the different flavours that start to register.
Practise Fall Gratitude
Grab a journal and pen and write a list of all the Fall things you are grateful for. If you prefer to practise gratitude in a different way, check out this post for some inspiration!
Let Your Inner Child Out
You can’t have a list of fun mindfulness activities without some form of play! Luckily, there are so many opportunities for play in Fall, so don’t forget to connect with your inner child. You could go to a pumpkin patch, race through a corn maze, jump into a pile of leaves – there are so many ways to play.
Watch a Fall Classic
There are so many great Fall or Halloween shows and movies. Maybe you even have some that you like to watch every year (Gilmore Girls or It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown are some of mine). Prep some Fall-inspired snacks, get yourself cozy and settle in for a Fall movie night, sans distractions!
Decorate Your Space
Life’s too short to not enjoy the space you spend most of your time in. So go ahead and put up those Fall or Halloween decorations! Maybe even get crafty and do some fun DIYs to save some cash.
Gather Seasonal Ingredients
Head out to a Farmers Market, farm stand or an apple orchard to grab some seasonal ingredients. Then cook or bake something delicious with them! Chili or sweet potato pie anyone?
Pack a Picnic
Bundle up and pack a Fall themed picnic, then enjoy it somewhere scenic! There is just something about sitting in the fresh air somewhere beautiful that makes the food taste even better.
Get Artsy
Collect some Fall foliage, acorns and/or pine cones and get crafty with them! I’m sure Pinterest is full of fun Fall craft ideas, or you can just let your creativity guide you.
Surround Yourself with Fall Scents
Replace your scented spa products such as lotions and soaps with Fall scents. Diffuse some warm and woodsy essential oils. Head to the store and smell all the Fall candles. Step outside and smell the fresh air!
Conclusion
Fall into mindfulness this season (see what I did there?) and enjoy every moment that you can. We know that mindfulness is good for our mental health, but turns out it can be fun too! As a great bonus, practicing more mindfulness, tuning into our senses and making the most of each season are all great tools for getting ahead of any potential seasonal blues. So go ahead and savour that pumpkin spice latte, for the sake of your mental health. And let me know below which fun mindfulness activities I should add to my Fall bucket list!
PS – looking for more fun ways to practice mindfulness? Check out these posts:
