My Seasonal Manifesto | Summer 2020

Writing a seasonal manifesto has become a gentle way to create a set of purposeful intentions for the season ahead. Shaped around what I notice in nature and the feeling this creates, each manifesto allows me to discover different ways of connecting to the seasonal rhythms. It helps me think about how I use my time and plan, it is a reminder of what feels good to focus on at certain times of the year, and provides a way to check-in with and align to the rhythms and rituals of the season. Writing my summer manifesto this year after months of retreating and shifting routines has nourished me and reconnected me to how I enjoy shaping my time.

The creation of a seasonal manifesto has been a regular ritual I build into my year and adds a layer of mindful appreciation to each day, each week and each month. My aim over time has been to shift the feeling of my manifesto towards a slow, gentle and sustainable connection to the pace of life reflected in nature. It feeds into how I plan my time, how I want to feel during the season, and rather than a specific ‘to do’ list it provides space to shift and change. There are no expectations created in my manifesto, just a set of thoughts around the season and what I could invite in.

Alongside my manifesto my word of the year helps me create intentions and some direction for the year. Last year I connected each seasonal manifesto with my word and it felt such a natural fit, and have decided to continue this year too. My word for 2020 is Light, chosen because of the natural changes in our light levels over the course of the year. Light, when you notice it, shapes so much of how we feel, what we do, and how we do it. The abundance of light in the summer months is a great time to have this word and feels a really restorative and impactful word for the summer season.

My summer manifesto this year connects to all my senses and feels wholesome in its intentions:

Make space to reflect during the light mornings

Rest and restore

Nurture gentle routines

Be energised by the simple things

I’m loving the sense of what I’ve landed on for this season, in amongst the uncertain times we are facing at the moment, those times of retreat and a change in how we do so many day to day things, knowing I have this process of creating a manifesto is comforting, familiar and grounds me in my own rituals I can own and live.