Reflecting on Autumn

North of Granby, CT

For the past two years, I've tried to chase the colors of the autumn I knew as a child.  The weather plays a crucial role in determining just how deep the colors will be and how long they will last.  No two years are alike.  Coming from New England, I can tell you that we all look forward to the autumn.  It brings a welcome surprise each year.

Bountiful Pumpkins
Granby, CT

Autumn then for me was a time of both reflection and connection.  It was a time that I gave myself permission to enjoy the smells of fallen leaves and apple cider.  I looked forward to the promise of colors, the cornucopia of pumpkins, and bushel baskets brimming with freshly picked apples.  It wasn't as much the end as it was the beginning, a clearly marked season.

There are changes going on in my life.  I can't say that I was ready for the autumn to set in.  I anticipate that it will be colorful.  We talk more about spring than we do about autumn, but my experience tells me that autumn can be more interesting.  Spring only brings shades of green.

If I can learn to appreciate and anticipate all over what autumn brings, I know that I will be able to enjoy this season more.  It's time to enjoy all that I've done and the friendships I've made.  Just perhaps in my autumn I will find the renewal of purpose and hope that I've been looking for my whole life.

My Dad wisely loves to tell me:  "no one leaves this world alive."  Learning how to enjoy each season is important.  We don't know what colors autumn will bring, but if it's anything like I've recently witnessed, even the end proves to have a colorful ending.  None of us knows the ending, but it will end.  In the mean time, I choose to harvest friends and memories.