Margaret Clayton: Stuck in a rut? The cool, crisp autumn breeze can be your wind of change

THERE’S something about September which signals a new start.

Children are back at school after the long summer break.

Workers return from their holidays with glossy suntans. We make plans to join a slimming club or take an evening class. We think about redecorating and browse through paint charts.

The TV programmes for autumn are launched and we decide what we want to watch. There are some cracking new crime series on offer.

I’m enjoying Trust Me on catch-up, about a woman who pretends to be a doctor and almost gets away with it.

Best of all, Saturday nights offer us the chance to get engrossed in a new series of Strictly Come Dancing. This year’s looks more exciting than ever, with a great line-up of contestants and a glamorous new female on the judging panel.

I’m backing TV presenter Ruth Langsford and Scottish comedian Susan Calman, and hoping they go the distance.

Autumn is one of my favourite seasons with leafy golden trees, spicy scents in the air, and the fun of crunching through heaps of leaves in the park.

It’s a season of new beginnings in so many ways.

A time to take stock and think about the future. Do we want to move house or think about building an extension? Is our job satisfying or is it time for a change? Is this relationship working or has it run its course? Am I making the best choices for my life or just stuck in a rut?

Most of us are comfortable with safe routines and are wary of change. But every now and then it’s not a bad idea to take a long, hard look at how we spend our time, our money, our precious days – and decide what we want for the months ahead.

One of my friends has decided to go travelling on her own, to countries she has longed to see but which weren’t on the family holiday map of summers in Spain.

So she’s spending evenings on the internet planning a journey which will end in India.

Another friend has decided that this is the year she will stop talking about learning French and actually sign up for classes.

A woman I know who has come through some tough health problems has decided that, now she realises how lucky she has been, she wants to put something back – and is going to do some voluntary work. So she has signed up to run housebound people to hospital appointments.

Good for her. In every community there are tasks waiting for people who have a little time and energy to spare.

Autumn, the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, offers an opportunity to think about how we spend the most precious commodity we have – our time.

Do we use it wisely and well? Are we happy with our routines?

A good way of starting the thinking process is going for a walk on your own on a crisp autumn day. Look around, sniff the air, listen to the birds and the sound of the leaves crunching under your feet.

Freeing up your mind is the first step in making the choices which lead to a new start.

They don’t need to be big changes. They just need to be yours.