I say these words often during this time of year; there is so much that comes up for me during winter time. Everything in nature goes dormant around us, the days are short…and here in the Pacific Northwest it is colder than many of us would like. I find myself missing the people I wish were still here to celebrate the end of another year with me — people who have passed away, or people who I am no longer in regular contact with.

In East Asian Medicine (EAM) each season brings with it an elemental aspect; the aspect of autumn is Metal. Metal shines brightly, reflects truth, and it also severs — it releases. Its energy chops things up and makes them easier to metabolize, both physically and emotionally. Metal helps us let go. One of the organs associated with Metal is the Lung. This relationship can be seen through the breath: inhalation, pause, and letting go with exhalation.

As healthcare practitioners, we’ve felt the need to censor ourselves and our beliefs in the name of fostering a safe environment for all people that come through our doors. In alignment with the intention of “maintaining good boundaries” between our “professional” selves and “personal” lives, we’ve been a bit in-the-closet around how we identify and what we feel our Work (i.e. that bigger work than can only be written with a capital “w”) is in the world. We’ve uncovered that staying hidden in silence would be tantamount to complicity with the systemic oppression that exists within our society as well as our own conditioned minds. And we simply aren’t interested in using power—against others or ourselves—in this way. So it’s high time we came out of the closet!