As autumn settles in, Nature begins to speak to us in whispers.

The crunch of fallen leaves, the rustle of branches swaying in the wind, and the distant calls of migrating birds—all these sounds invite us into a quieter, more deliberate rhythm. They aren’t loud; rather, they coax us into presence, asking us to listen deeply, not only with our ears but with our whole body.

It’s an invitation to tune into the delicate melodies of the world around us and recognize the unspoken—the things that are felt, but not always spoken.

“I seek to create space where attention slowsdown ,where the body tunes itself to frequencies often ignored .To listen is to extendgenerosity to others …” Prologue II Resonant Blossom- Tania Candian artist

In this way, Autumn offers us an opportunity to practice active listening. As a coach, active listening is a key competency to apply! It’s about being fully present in the moment, paying attention to what is being communicated verbally, somatically, and beneath the surface.

It’s not just hearing the rustle of leaves, but feeling what it evokes within us. It’s the hum of the wind and the softness of the light fading early in the day—it all carries meaning.

Just as we learn to listen in mindfulness-based and somatic coaching, where we pay attention to the messages our body is sending, we can also listen to the natural world, allowing its rhythms to guide us into a deeper state of awareness.

The sounds of Autumn—the wind, the whisper of branches, the crunch of leaves underfoot—are not isolated from the environment; they are part of a larger, interconnected web of energy. When we listen to them, we are invited to slow down, to become part of that flow, to feel the shift in the air as it mirrors our own inner changes. Just as nature moves into its resting phase, we too are called to soften, reflect, and release.

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During my last group session in nature, which I entitled “Listening to the Melody of the Season,” I invited the group to do a sound walk where we explored the sounds around us from different angles, dimensions, and distances.

What emerged was very interesting: for some, that kind of practice brought to mind a dear person and triggered some emotions; for others, the practice of actively listening evoked the awareness of how precious it is to give space to others rather than talking over them, where many important things will be missed.

Take a breath!

But Autumn doesn’t just speak to us through sound; it also communicates through color. Here in Beijing in these days, we are savoring the deep orange, the vibrant reds, muted yellows, and soft browns of the season which offer another layer of resonance—each color vibrating at a different frequency. Just as sound has its own rhythm and texture, so too do the colors of fall.

How would it be to listen with our eyes while walking in the busy streets of the city?

We could begin to hear the emotional tone of the season—the subtle invitation to pause, reflect, and find stillness within ourselves.

This is where the art of listening deeply becomes a practice that extends beyond just hearing or observing.

It’s a way of tuning in to the unspoken—whether it’s the softer cadence of the season, the body’s subtle signals, or the quiet sound of your own voice.

When we listen with intention, we begin to uncover the deeper layers of our own experience.

The shift in sound, in color, in light, and in energy becomes a language we can interpret.

Listening to the melody of the season means paying attention to what is unspoken, to what is felt in the quiet spaces between moments. The sounds and colors of Autumn become our teachers—whispering that this is a time to reflect, to embrace the stillness, and to allow ourselves the grace to slow down.

As in my mindfulness-somatic coaching, where I accompany clients to tune in to the whispers of their body, so Nature does remind us to tune in to the rhythm of our inner world.