The Coming of Crisp Air

Rustling leaves, spectacular colors, warm days (most years) and cooling nights; rain or dry, autumn is a bit magical. Unseasonably warm years have some of us wishing for chillier weather. They are ready for sweaters, boots, bonfires, and color tours. Sooner or later, the earth will do what it must to keep turning and growing and surviving. Today I am celebrating the coming of the tide of colors, the turning from one season to the next, the beauty of Mother Earth as she changes her clothes and prepares for the cold months ahead when she will wear mostly white.

It is quite amazing really – the whole leaf changing process. Growing up and learning that process and knowing it as an adult, it seems almost miraculous. (I truly believe science and faith go hand in hand.) But as a child, my siblings and I were not concerned with the science involved with the seasons. We just enjoyed what each season offered. In the fall, we built leaf border houses or jumped in big piles of them. In winter we sledded, skated, built snow forts, and when the wind was really blowing, we hid under the pine trees and imagined all sorts of desperate stories of being caught in snowstorms and such. Spring was not as giving as far as creative usage since it was often wet (April showers bring May flowers was our motto - and true back in our day), but it was refreshing and we watched the earth come alive with leaves and flowers and green grass scattered with baby birds or rabbits and, oh, that fresh smell of spring. Summers gave us time in the dirt, at the beach, standing in the rain, playing games (Scream Bloody Murder!) and being able to be barefoot.

Go ahead and get your sweaters, jackets, and boots ready. It may be a little warm yet where you live, but the chilliness is coming. One of the things we can never change is the seasons, so we may as well enjoy it as much as we can. I can already hear the dry leaves talking, smell the crisp air, and see the bonfires flickering…