Autumn, I’ll Fall for You Anytime.

I love the arrival of Autumn. We’re still seeing daytime temps at 80° but at night we drop to 59°. The leaves have begun to fall reminding us that we are now well into the back-half of this annual lap round the sun. With it I feel it brings a sense of wonder. For me I’m certain it does.

In the world of Vivaldi I am a fan of Winter but in reality Autumn holds my interest better than any. Fall takes us from the dog days of Summer and reminds us that change is not only possible, it is necessary. Soon the leaves will begin changing colors and this reminds us that change is also beautiful. With some change to dark and Grey we can anticipate the coming of light and rebirth. In this way the death of Summer as we move into Autumn reminds us that a proverbial shedding of skin is needed first us to emerge anew when the rains come.

In Pennsylvania we get there a lot sooner than my ancestral homeland of Missouri. The timeline runs 2-4 weeks ahead. Right now is no different. As the leaves drop the wind has picked up a delightful crispness. As a committed user of A/C when the heat clears 81 degrees this is one of the few times in any year my meter isn’t spinning with reckless abandon. I often wonder if PECO suffers a little sadness at this time.

Taking in the last few weeks I’ve coached a soccer team in 2 games, enjoyed a visit to a distillery, helped a friend move in the rain, tuckpointed a staircase, read “To Kill a Mockingbird” [again], done some planning, and finished a lot of project. On the whole I have been productive. Moreover, I have been in a good mood and it came naturally.

This is one of my rambling posts spawned by random occurrences, events, or visuals that strike me. This time it was the green grass and the blue sky with tolerable temperatures. As I considered what to write I immersed myself in the understanding that change is good. 2022 has taught me a lot about resilience (more than I cared to know actually) and part of resilience is adaptation. My new normal is not all that normal if taken from the baseline of the rest of my life. I have my health, my family, and my life. It hasn’t all come easy, but I am adapting. And it is good.