Savoring the Season

The last few weeks of October are going to fly, and I do mean fly.

The rest of this week itself is completely packed with good things: readings, book signings, and a girls trip to the State Fair or Texas.  It just wouldn’t be autumn without the Fair.  It’s one of my absolute favorite fall traditions.

Next week is going to be mostly devoted to preparing for my presentation.  That includes creating the coolest slide show ever and, not to brag, I make a pretty mean slide show.  It’s one of those important life skills you learn in college.

The following week, is the last week of October, and I’ve got to be honest, I’m not sure I’m ready for it.  I know it’s only the 15th, but I feel like Halloween has come too quickly!  It’s one of my absolute favorite times of the year and I need to soak it up!  Thankfully, I’ve had a couple of days that were devoted entirely to anticipating the arrival of All Hallow’s Eve.

Saturday was a wonderful gray fall day.  It was cold, so I was actually able to wear a scarf and a sweater.  My friend and I spent the day browsing Halloween stuff at Party City, Target, and it ended with a trip to a local pumpkin patch.  It was the perfect fall day.  I need to have more of those before the season ends!

There was a book I read when I was younger, and  I can’t remember which it was to save my life, but there was a quote that really stuck with me.  “If a person lives 100 years, they only get to see the leaves change 100 times.”  That doesn’t seem enough to me.  100 autumns is not nearly enough.  I’m not even sure 1000 would be enough.

That being said, go outside. Enjoy the leaves. Drink a pumpkin latte. Wear a scarf. Watch a scary movie. Enjoy the season, because our autumns, like everything else, are numbered.

October in Photographs

Self-Explanatory.

I also had a little fun with my books because why not?

Fall is Here!

Ladies and gentlemen, the autumnal equinox is upon us.  This means cooler weather, colorful leaves, sweaters, scarves, and pumpkin everything.

Confession: I like the idea of pumpkin spiced lattes and cakes and bread, but I do not enjoy the taste.  At all.  I love the smell and the pumpkins themselves, but I cannot eat or drink anything that is pumpkin spicy.  

It’s hard describe with words what exactly it is that makes fall so magical.  For me, it’s always been more of a feeling, an experience of the senses.  Fall looks like crisp blue skies, orange and red and yellow leaves, brown grass, haystacks, and just a touch of purple and black.  Fall smells like pumpkin spice and firewood and wool sweaters and a fresh northern breeze.  Fall sounds like the crackle of leaves and the whispers of wind and a hint of eerie, hypnotic, ethereal music.  Fall feels like crisp, cool, refreshing air, like the memories of ghosts who’ve gone before, like for the first time, all magic is possible.

  

Fall is a time to spend with your friends and family.  It’s a time for state fairs and pumpkin patches and being outside.  It’s a time to savor and enjoy.  It’s a time to remember what it means to be simple and to believe in what we can’t see.

Best of all, it’s a time for ghosts and witches and things that go bump in the night.

Happy Fall everyone!