I hope there are seasons in heaven. Something tugs at my heart when winter eases into spring and summer spirals into autumn. Do you feel it, too? A nip in the air early morning and late evening, with summer warmth lingering somewhere in the middle. Pears are ripening in the root cellar, their sweet scent calling to my inner child. They sit among pint jars of plum jam and quart jars of the summer tomatoes I canned the other day.
What is it about Fall that reminds me of youthful innocence? Caramel apples and popcorn balls. Halloween parties and scavenger hunts. The changing colors of the leaves—from green to yellow to orange to deep red. I’m blessed to live in the country where I have a front row seat to this awe-inspiring metamorphosis and it never fails to transport me to childhood.
I’m also blessed to be married to a man who shares my love of autumn. As the days begin to cool down, we plan our seasonal two-mile walk into Volcano, the small, living ghost town where we live. We have dinner at the Whiskey Flat Saloon (a local bar attached to the St. George Hotel and restaurant) and wander up and down the historic streets before heading back home in the dark. Chris makes a lame attempt to frighten me with his poor rendition of a galloping horse. “What’s that?” I asked the first time he did this. “The headless horseman,” he said. “You know, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” I had to applaud his mischievous attempt even if his execution needed serious work.
So, as we hurtle toward autumn, I’m on the lookout for plump pumpkins and hay bales, corn stalks and colorful mums. I attempt to turn my front porch into something from Small Town, Connecticut or Vermont. I want to bask in everything Fall while the season lasts. Because in this hectic, fast-paced culture, anything that reminds me of an innocent time is a welcome relief.
What’s your favorite season, and why?
Comments 1
Hey Jennie, you bring back memories of time up in Placerville with Grandma and Grandpa. The pears and tomatoes. However, I fell in love with Tulsa the first fall I spent here at the University of Tulsa. Here the seasons are crisper than they were in Alameda. Here they are more like what you get where you live now where the weather changes more dramatically with the seasons. I am hard pressed to come up with my favorite season. They all have their magical moments so that which ever season is coming on, I have favorite memories. So right now fall is it.