The mornings have a tinge of crispness. The plants along the trail are showing light yellows and bits of red. The Aspens are not the same bright green as they were in mid-summer. Days are noticeably shorter, especially in the morning. The season is beginning to transform in the high elevations of Colorado as summer wanes. Mixed emotions occur during this period of impending change.
Summer was my favorite season growing up mostly because it was full of long days and outdoor activities. I liked going to school, but I reveled in the freedom summer portended. I was not a fan of winter as it was hard on the farm. Making sure the animals were comfortable took an effort. Bundling up to go outdoors was time consuming.
As I age, however, I appreciate more fully the colors of fall, the pristineness of snow, and the harkening of spring wildflowers. Those observations add variety to my life. I no longer have a favorite season. The season I am in is the best. Although sometimes difficult to let go of the warmth of summer, I look forward to the evolving changes in nature that I see each day.
I am grateful to live in a landscape with stark and overlapping seasons. I appreciate the changes taking place and am also aware of the anxiety they can produce.
I love Yoko Ono’s quote: “Spring passes and one remembers one’s innocence. Summer passes and one remembers one’s exuberance. Autumn passes and one remembers one’s reverence. Winter passes and one remembers one’s perseverance.”
As I reflect about an appreciation for seasons, I think about the parallels of my life. When I was young, it was like spring. The years of my adulthood and career were reminiscent of summer with all the possibilities. I now reflect on the autumn of my life as I wind down with vagaries occurring in my energy levels and thinking. Winter will eventually come as my soul experiences the final cycle on earth. As Catherine Pulsifer reminded, “Embrace the beauty of every season, for it is in these transitions that we truly bloom.”
Pensively written, I like the obvious reflection behind the words… fall for me has always been about harvest and getting ready to have everything ready for the challenges of winter- “reap what you sow”. I guess that’s a little how I feel about this life stage….
I like that perspective a lot! (Wish I’d thought of it!)