Photo by Omid Armin on Unsplash

by Linda Forrest

LiTup 365 is the first class I ever created. When it began, it was just four classes, one on each of the solstices and equinoxes.

I’ve always loved the varying seasons. Growing up in Utah, I had the pleasure of experiencing four distinctive experiences with nature every year, and for me, each is uniquely powerful. Whether it is the silence of winter, the potential of spring, the hard work of summer, or the burst of color we see in autumn, each stage has its lessons. For me, they all begin now, with the reaping of our harvest.

This season is very much about seeing what we’ve done with our lives, and sometimes what we see is painful, but it can also be bright like the painted mountains around me. Be it good or bad, the benefit of seeing what we have or haven’t done is that we now get to decide what we will do next.

My favorite fall reference is the changing colors around us. For a long time, I wondered what chemical reaction caused that change. It wasn’t until a story my daughter shared from something she learned in school—I must have missed that class—that I learned the true beauty of the season. I have exciting news for those of you who are where I was and have wondered what happens in fall to bring on brilliant shades of color.

As we all know, most of nature is varying shades of green, but it’s not. Chlorophyll is green, and plants use chlorophyll for food. They hold it in the leaves, which is what gives them their green coloring. Most of us probably remember this class from school, but many of us didn’t learn that the tree draws all of its chlorophyll to the roots in the fall. It does this to strengthen them against the oncoming cold. It also promotes the roots reaching deep, but more fascinating, I think, is that it exposes the tree’s natural colors. Those brilliant reds, oranges, yellows, and even purples are who the tree was all along.

The same is true for us. As primates, our historic tendency was to blend in, match the world around us, and be green with everyone else, one might say. However, being primates is no longer functional in the world. We can’t all be the same.

LiTup is a self-realization process designed to help you connect with your true nature and share it with the world. As a celebration of what LiTup has become over my last six years of teaching it, I would like to share its journey with you.

As I mentioned, it began with only four classes, but as a student of the course quickly pointed out, it needed more. Missing just one class meant you were out of the loop for six months. We wanted to be more engaged in that. So, I expanded my focus to working beyond just the fundamental rules of nature. I also began to include principles of universal science as well, and through that expansion, a name was born, LiTup: Living in Truth through universal principles. I capitalized the words Living and Truth for a reason. This course is not about existing. It is about thriving, living fully and completely. It is also about doing so honestly. I’m not talking about the little lies we tell ourselves here and there. I’m talking about something much deeper than that.

Blending in is not just about conforming. It is about being taught to no longer be the person we were born to be. When a young child walks up to an adult and says, “I’m going to be a superhero when I grow up,” well-meaning adults will often decide to tell them what is and isn’t possible in the world, based upon their adult understanding of it. Of course, little minds don’t work the same. When we tell a child they can’t be or do something; we tell them they can’t be themselves. Because of these experiences in our childhood, we often think of ourselves as square pegs needing to shave our edges to fit into round holes. The truth is; we are each unique, and we were born to fill a void that only we can. Working synchronously with nature makes that endeavor effortless and organic.

This is the time of year where we get to see our true colors, the beauty of who we are beyond all our rules. We also realize the fruits of the effort over the last year. It is a time of breakthroughs to acknowledge all of the work we’ve put in throughout the year. It is also a time to celebrate and be grateful for all we have.

The most impactful aspect of the fall season for me is the harvest. We culminate the fruits of our efforts, and as we do, we realize the seed of next year’s potential lies in that cultivation. We have grown. Even if we haven’t put intentional effort into our growth, we are not the same person we were last year, and we won’t be the same again next year.

Wherever you begin, this year’s realization gives birth to next year’s possibility. So be amazed by where you are, by how far you have come in life, or even how you might have fallen. Possibility is born, even of pain. Whatever you do next, be grateful for where you are and what you have to offer. Let your fall leaves shine. The seed of next year will take care of itself. All you need to do right now is to love yourself in the deepest way you can imagine today and trust the journey.

I look forward to connecting with you along the way.