It’s the Weekend and Fall Is in the Air
One more week until the autumnal equinox on September 23rd!
It’s the weekend again, and this weekend we are all gearing up for the rapid onset of fall. The official autumnal equinox is September 23rd so next weekend we will be knee-deep in leaves. But most of us are already champing at the bit.
We are already preparing for the chilly transition to fall, it is in the air. We are all taking those first tentative steps into autumn, the first steps into fall, and onto the bridge between summer and winter.
Those implacable foes, summer, and winter, are only separated by the loveliest, most fragile of bridges we celebrate every fall.
Autumn is actually the favorite season of the year for most Americans, almost doubling up in popularity over summer in some polls.
The drumbeat of a new season, already slowly building up in the background, will continue and get louder as we move into the full glory and splendor of autumn. For many people, it has already started.
The sparkling clarity of the fall, the crisp, clear air, the hint of frost in the air, and the excitement of watching the beautiful colorful leaves falling have already started.
Who can resist crunching their way through a freshly fallen field of autumn leaves?
The tactile sense, the sound, the aromas, and the heady exhilaration of the new season all combine to make for a pleasant, reassuring backdrop to the inevitable change of seasons.
Bring it on fall, we are ready and waiting! The waiting is the hardest part…
A lot of America suffered through dreadful heat waves this summer, worse than in many other years. As long as you had A/C you could make it through, but millions of Americans don’t have A/C or can’t afford to use it if they do.
All of these summer sufferers are welcoming autumn with open arms, and so are most Americans who loved their summer fun and outings.
We are all ready for a change in the weather, it sets the mood for all of us every time we step out the door and take that first deep breath of the crisp clear fall air.
Nature is wonderful.
It provides such an exquisite blend and contrast between all four seasons. Each one has its own special set of thrills and chills, excitement and anticipation, and comforts and pleasures.
We all have our favorite seasons, but fall is the most beloved season of all. It is fun for families, children, and pets and we all have our favorite way to express our feelings.
Halloween is the first big fall event to celebrate. I remember the yearly trip to the nearby local pumpkin patch with my daughter and her friends to Half Moon Bay, about 30 miles south of San Francisco, with nothing but fond memories.
It was a time of great excitement and joy.
We all had the same goal in mind. Half Moon Bay had thousands of pumpkins to pick and choose from, at reasonable prices, and you could always bargain with the farmers who brought their pumpkins to sell.
The goal, of course, was to find the perfect pumpkin to bring home and carve into scary, formidable jack-o-lanterns.
It involved certain skills like good vision, persistence to not settle for second best, and the patience and wisdom to decide.
We didn’t drive all that way just to pick the first pumpkin we saw! Oh no, it was a much more refined, sophisticated approach that we honed over the years as we all grew more experienced in the selection techniques.
Everybody was in a good mood, and the children were especially excited and exhilarated. The parents helped out in the process by hoisting the pumpkins off the ground to better gauge their weight and size.
We took photos of each other and managed to capture the essence of the magical moment every year, priceless treasures of days now long gone.
The thrill of driving back home with our hard-earned prizes was always exciting too. We never had a bad time going through this annual ritual.
I hope all of you have the opportunity to go to your own special pumpkin patch this year and usher in the new season on a joyous note.
The last days of summer are ticking away, but fall is here! We are all connected…
