Sips with Sophie: Autumn Inspiration

Autumn has finally arrived! As summer has taken a final bow for the year, I’m looking forward to blazing colors on the trees, crisp mornings and cozy mugs of deliciousness, sure to fill the coming months. 

I was on Pinterest the other day and someone had created a pin that said, “You either love pumpkin  season, or you are wrong.” I had a good chuckle over that one. Each season brings its own pros and cons.  

I love the greenery that marks rebirth in spring even though my allergies and naturally curly hair doth protest too much. My favorite part of the season is celebrating Easter and the hope of the Cross. Summer allows great beach or pool time and mouthwatering seafood spreads. Winter is marked by the Christmas festivities and offers a time to draw us closer to those we may not see throughout the rest of the year. 

But I love fall most of all! Watching football, baking pumpkin goodies (plus apple and maple, too!), and not having to shave my legs every day are the highlights of the season! Just make sure you don’t jump into a pile of leaves with a wet sucker. Linus had that one right!  

Lounging in sweats and hoodies while catching up on reading and sipping tea are my favorite ways to unwind in the evenings. Couch time with my husband and dogs in front of a crackling fire (when the weather cooperates) is a great time of reflection and counting my endless blessings.

Fall is also a great time to work on cross training with strength workouts.  I love cold, crips mornings for running on local trails amidst a scenery of falling leaves and brilliant sunbeams streaming through the trees. When rainy, bone chilling weather moves in with Old Man Winter and keeps me from enjoying my runs outside, I get to transition to focusing on what I can do indoors to stay healthy and fit.  

This autumn season, I’m in the midst of revisions on my first unpubbed work, a Regency romance novella that is part of a trilogy I started last winter. No doubt, the drafting part is my fave because I can free write without judgment from my internal editor. She is hard to ignore and for years, I let her win and never got to the end of my previous WIPs. Let’s just say that self-editing as you go is not nearly exciting as getting the story out even if you have to change it later. I have no problem killing my darlings and all that jazz.  

Plantster that I am, my drafts are like walking into a hoarder’s home, filled floor to ceiling with so much stuff you can hardly move around in there. I’ve put my internal editor on hold until now. I need her now more than ever to do a deep clean and scour and scrub every inch of this story. 

It’s a daunting procedure but necessary, much how I am being refined as I continue to grow in my relationship with the Lord. Some days I make progress while other days I experience setbacks. 

I just want to get to the end of this adventure and be published already! 

And yet, the Lord reminds me to wait. To be still and know. My times are in His hands not mine. His timing is perfect. Trust Him.  

And so I will wait and be patient and faithful on my end. At the right time and in the right season, no matter how long it takes, He will complete a good work in me and I will be published at last! 

What is your autumn inspiration?

Happy Fall, Y’all!

Sophie