Just An Ordinary Day in October
October 21, 2026
October is a generous month. It coaxes us from summer into cooler, more purposeful days. It is a bridge from leisure to readiness, from carefree warmth to focused intention. As the days unfold, our perspective changes. Gone are the mindless errands in short sleeves and flip-flops. We grab a sweater—just in case. Later, a jacket.
This beautiful month has always offered me a meditation on aging. As the trees begin to shout their life cycle in a roar of color, an awareness rises that we too mature into an infinity we can only imagine and trust.
My grandnephew offered me an image for all this one day as we watched a murmuration of starlings just outside our window.
He had turned a small pair of binoculars to the wrong end, rendering the starlings farther than they actually were. “The birds are too tiny and too far away”! But when we flipped the binoculars, he gained a new and delighted perspective!
I think October is like that pair of binoculars. If we look at time from the inverse side, we see “summer” disappearing, life diminishing, memories dissolving. But when we allow the present moment to magnify our wonder and gratitude for life, we see possibility, gratitude, and hope.
At first, Nate struggled to focus his binoculars. It was the first time he had tried. A gentle nudge of my hands helped him discover the right view. October is a good month to give ourselves that same kind of nudging. Yes, it is almost winter, with all the definitive realities that winter may bring.
But it is also time for the most glorious display of color, migration, and light imaginable! Praying with October’s magnificence brings us closer to the Creator whose annual gift invites us to live – like the trees, with flamboyant joy and trust; like the birds – with inexhaustible confidence in our ultimate destination.
Music: Tchaikovsky – The Seasons: October (“Autumn Song”) – played by Vladimir Tropp
Suggested Scripture: Psalm 90
For Your Reflection
- What feelings or reactions do I have after reading this reflection?
- Do my feelings or reactions remind me of any passage or event in scripture, especially in the life of Christ?
- What actions might I take today because of my response to these readings?