Last week on my lunch break, the wind was blowing, the sun was shining, and golden leaves were gusting off the trees and swirling through the breeze like someone had turned the whole fall day upside down and shook it.
It was glorious.
Days like these are why fall is my favorite season. The days are getting shorter, the temperature is cooling, and there’s a nip in the air as if winter is just sort of flirting with me…feeling me out to see if I might be interested in catching a movie later. I am, of course – I love winter, but the teasing, will-we-won’t-we nature of fall is just so…intoxicating.
I am one of those odd individuals who loves (and needs) a bright (not hot) day, but also has a special affinity for early dusk and the ensuing darkness. Evenings in the summer are annoying – their long hours just dragging the day out, and with it, all the people who somehow just disappear when the sun sets early. I don’t really know where or why they all go, because when I see them in summer, they’re doing the same things I am – walking the dogs, enjoying the evening coolness, winding down from the hustle and bustle of the day.
But when darkness comes early, I’m suddenly the only one out walking with my pups, sniffing the air for that first hint of snow, and enjoying the peace and calm that happens only when the moon is on duty.
I love the nighttime as much as I love fall, and together they are a formidable pair. I was walking along with the dogs in the dark recently, the glow of their leashes the only light for yards, and we all stumbled into a pile of lovely crunchy leaves. The sound was almost deafening, frightening for a moment, and then such great fun to rend the night with such a happy, seasonal sound. Not to mention the feel of shuffling through nature’s bubble-wrap, ankle-deep. It’s fun during the day, when it can be an intentional thing, but definitely moreso when it becomes an unexpected perk to walking at night.
I wish fall could stick around longer. I feel spoiled that we’ve gotten so much of its attention this year, as we often only get a week or two of its company before it’s shooed away by the indomitable Mr. Frost. But until the globe freezes, I’m going to enjoy every minute of the swirling, floating, flirting leaves.
Stay awhile, Fall. Dessert before dinner, that’s what you are.
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