As the days shorten and the air turns crisp, Autumn settles around us with a quiet insistence. In the Five Element framework, this is the season of Metal — a time for discernment, reflection, and release. Just as fields are harvested and crops collected, we’re invited to take stock of what has grown in our own lives this year, noticing what truly matters. Autumn’s practice asks us to cut away the excess, simplify, and return to what nourishes us most deeply.

This Week in Practice: Cutting Away the Excess

Autumn teaches us the beauty of release. Like the leaf falling effortlessly from the branch, this season asks us to loosen our grasp — on clutter, on habits, even on ways of being that no longer serve us. The Five Element of Metal embodies discernment, the capacity to see clearly what matters and to let the rest fall away. It is an invitation to examine both the material and the immaterial, asking ourselves: what deserves my attention, and what is ready to return to the soil?

In our tea practice, this principle translates beautifully into small, tangible acts of simplification. You might choose to brew tea with fewer leaves, selecting only the tools and utensils that are essential for the session. Perhaps you clear your chaxi, keeping only what is necessary for a mindful, deliberate pour. Or you may practice in silence, without music or other distractions, letting the quiet become part of the ritual. Notice how these small reductions shift your experience, deepening your awareness of each aroma, each swirl, and each sip.

Beyond the tea itself, Autumn invites us to reflect on our lives as a whole. What have you “harvested” this year — experiences, lessons, relationships — that feel worth keeping? What aspects of your life are ready to be released? Jon Kabat-Zinn reminds us that letting go is, at its core, “letting things be as they are.” When we stop clinging, life begins to flow again. Tea can serve as a gentle guide into this flow: the slow pour, the rising steam, the warmth returning to your hands. This week, allow your practice to reveal what is essential, and what is ready to fall away.

Five Element Insights: Edges and Essentials

Autumn calls us to step back, take stock, and cultivate clarity. The Metal Element encourages discernment, guiding us to differentiate between what serves us and what weighs us down. Reflection during this season is not merely intellectual; it is a full-bodied awareness of how energy, time, and attention are flowing in your life.

Here are a few prompts to guide your reflection this week:

• What do I consider essential in my life right now, and what might I be overvaluing or holding onto unnecessarily?
  This question invites you to weigh priorities and notice where excess may have accumulated, whether in material objects, commitments, or mental habits.

• How do my body and instincts guide me toward clarity or simplicity in my daily choices?
  Your senses, habits, and routines can offer subtle guidance. How might you align more closely with them, allowing simplicity to emerge naturally?

• Where in my life could I allow more space for endings and transitions, trusting that what is released will serve the next season?
  Change often feels uncomfortable, yet it is essential. Notice the areas where endings are possible, and consider how creating space allows new life to emerge.

Engaging with these prompts can help you embody the reflective qualities of Autumn, turning awareness into deliberate action — whether that action is the gentle clearing of your physical space, or the more internal work of releasing thoughts, patterns, or expectations.

What We’re Drinking: Empty Mirror — Ancient Tree Gongting Shou Puerh 2025

This week, we're sitting with Empty Mirror, which was part of this Autumn’s Seasonal Tea Club box. Sourced from clean, old-growth shou puerh in Western Yunnan, this tea is both grounding and contemplative. Its earthy, aromatic profile — reminiscent of fallen leaves, deep forest springs, and late-season vegetables — pairs beautifully with the quiet introspection of Autumn.

Drinking Empty Mirror is an invitation to mindfulness. Its smooth, full-bodied qualities encourage you to notice what you hold onto, and what you may let go. Treated reverently, each infusion becomes a practice in presence, reflecting the subtle shifts of the season. As the first chill of Autumn touches the air, this tea provides warmth and grounding, offering a steady anchor as we navigate endings and transitions.

Try Empty Mirror →

Creative Inspirations: Antiphonals by Sarah Davachi

For contemplative accompaniment this week, we turn to Sarah Davachi’s Antiphonals. This minimalist exploration of tone, repetition, and resonant space creates a sonic cocoon that mirrors the discipline and clarity of Autumn’s practice. Her restrained palette of Mellotron, piano, and organ produces long, sustained tones that encourage stillness and reflection, inviting us to notice what is essential and let the rest fall away.

Much like a mindful tea session, listening to Antiphonals cultivates patience, presence, and clarity. The music slows perception, opening space to observe subtleties in our surroundings and ourselves. For this reason, it serves as a perfect companion to the Metal season, enhancing our capacity to discern, release, and honor the quiet rhythms of Autumn.

Listen on Spotify →

Friends of Living Tea: Julie Peterson, Singing Springs Botanicals

This week, we celebrate Julie Peterson, founder of Singing Springs Botanicals. Nestled in the wilds of Southwest Colorado, Julie draws inspiration from the San Juan Mountains, crafting herbal remedies that honor both plants and the ecosystems they inhabit. Her products reflect deep care, thoughtful attention, and reverence for the natural world.

Julie’s journey began with childhood explorations of edible wild plants and tea-making in the mountains, later deepened through studies in Ayurveda, herbalism, and holistic healing. Today, her work continues to bridge the wisdom of plants with intentional self-care practices, providing products that are as nourishing for the mind and spirit as they are for the body. Her ethos — of listening closely to the land, respecting its gifts, and supporting its vitality — serves as a quiet reminder that clarity and well-being arise from harmony with the natural world.

Explore Singing Springs Botanicals →
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Autumn, Metal, and the practice of letting go are not abstract concepts; they are woven into each sip, each reflection, and each mindful act we engage in. Whether through tea, sound, journaling, or honoring the plants that sustain us, this season asks us to discern, simplify, and return to what truly matters.