The last golden days slowly start to fade. The sun reaches the horizon more quickly with each passing day. Cool breezes skip through brittle, bright colored leaves. The flowers of fall get ready to take their final bow before the sparkling white curtain comes down.

The bright pinks, deep purples, and sunshine yellows of summer are replaced with the deep reds, burnt oranges and golden yellows of fall. Animals slowly pick their way across open fields and dense forests, adding to the brilliant, breathtaking spectacle of the season.

I’ll admit, I still get excited every time I find a bird’s nest with eggs. It’s like a treasure hunt trying to find one. You can often hear them. And you can often find a nest. But it’s not every day you find a nest with eggs. And certainly not one you can get close enough to take a picture of.

But this was my lucky day. A nest with two robin’s eggs. And it was quite low in a tree so all it took was an old plastic chair and my tiptoes to see inside. Was it the most safe? Probably not. But the excitement of seeing those two, beautiful blue eggs, snuggled together in a twisted bed of grass, weeds, twigs, and dog hair, made my heart skip a beat. And that was totally worth it.

If you really want to be inspired, check your closet. There is way more inspiration in there than you think! There are colors. And textures. And materials. And even feelings. Because things in our closet do that. They evoke feelings. They hold memories. They give you a direction.

Often, our closets hold the secret to things we are really drawn to. It’s all part of self-discovery.

What do you do when you walk by a pile of rocks with a single painted rock in the middle? You stop to take a picture, of course! That one rock reminds you that it’s ok to be different. It’s ok to be unique. It’s ok to radiate happiness, even when those around you are a bit dull and gray. You don’t have to be like everyone else to be part of the group.

Much like the pattern on that stone, that reaches out from the center, we must also reach out. Sometimes it gives those around us a direction. A path. A way out of the gray world and into the beautiful light.

Well, you know it’s fall when the squirrels start stashing their bounty for the winter. And that’s when we, as humans, start to pay more attention to them. We watch to see if they’re frantic. To see how much food they’re collecting. To see if there are any signs, no matter how small, that it’s going to be a long winter.

And yes, these furry little creatures are like an oversized mouse with a fluffy tale. But look a bit closer. They have inquisitive eyes. And twitching ears that pick up on the softest sounds. They have small paws, but with mighty strength. They are more than a sign of a harsh winter to come. They are a soft, curious creature, trying to understand the world around them.

Peonies have a certain old-time elegance to them. Their sherbet petals look like tissue paper against a backdrop of rich green foliage. They seem so fragile; as if the slightest whisper of wind will ruin the delicate blooms. And only a keen observer will see the deep gold, nestled in the center of the flower.

This beautiful flower somehow hints at its Greek mythology namesake, Paeon. Both have certain healing powers. And, if nothing else, simply pausing to admire the soft elegance of the blooms will brighten a bad day.