Fall is here - and today has not gotten above 48 degrees. The cold has descended and though it has been a bit colder than usual in the last few days I still think that this is a gorgeous fall day! The colors of the various trees around the neighborhood are filled with reds, maroons, and yellows right now. I am waiting for the flaming oranges since they herald the ending of the season.
I love the fall because this time of the year is when I find so much that I enjoy doing outdoors and feel so alive during the changes that the season often brings! From leaves, to the new beginnings that come from schools starting a new year it is a time for a new start as much as the spring time is in my opinion, and it sure can be a grand time for walks in those color-filled leaves too!
Fall is the end of the growing season here, and the beginning of what will become for many the bleakest of seasons here in the Midwest - winter. But for me it's the best time because it is the beginning of a time of slowing down and enjoying my own thoughts amid the storms and swirling snow that peppers the winter months. The quiet at the center of a stormy day can be rejuvenating, and even invigorating.
With the world around us so mired in the noise and tensions that surround our days we seldom take the time to get beyond what drives us. That ever present noise in our world - the din from our phones that we allow to fill every moment with calls, and our MP3 players and that music can truly drive us crazy. From rap and rock and roll, to everything in between there are very few moments for thinking and quiet times in our world these days.
But winter can make it often impossible to hear anything above the wind driven blizzards that rules our everyday lives here along the West Michigan shoreline. So, I find taking a deep breath or even cuddling up to the quiet with nothing but the sounds of the natural world can be the best escape from my crazy world.
So, I have a suggestion - Instead of rebelling against old man winter and going from one icy accident to another, why for once not fight the changes that winter brings, but like the animals live with it. We might even learn to revel in those changes and use them to enjoy life and not simply exist in the techno-craziness that has become our world.
I wish we have fall here too, instead of just two seasons. I have a feeling, the succeeding months will be magical. I can feel the spirit! :)
ReplyDeleteYou're so right; just being with the season is the only way.
ReplyDeleteI live in northern BC, Canada - woke up to a light dusting of snow this morning. I must admit, though, that being one with the season takes a little adjustment!!
I'm actually jealous! I love the 4 seasons, and here in Michigan there are so many that try to pretend that we don't have winter because they "charge" through it at regular speeds and end up in on accident after another.
ReplyDeleteI revel in the snow and even like (I know I am crazy!) the snow of winter. Mostly because I have to slow down and think about things!
But you're right, there is an adjustment and you have to think before doing anytime like walking or driving.
Fall and winter are magical in our area! Whether seeing it as I walk, or from the inside as the snow swirls down.
ReplyDeleteThe problems usually come with driving in the snow. People are often unable (Or unwilling!) to adjust and slow down. That's actually part of why I like it because the season makes us S-L-O-W down. :-)
I used to hate winter-the cold and snow. Then I got resigned to it, but now I actually enjoy it. As Chekhov said: "When you're happy you don't notice if it's summer or winter."
ReplyDeleteNothingprofound,
ReplyDeleteThe poet in me has always loved the cold, and the many shapes that make up our winter landscape here in Michigan...strange I know but it offers pictures much like another planet, or what might be a pre-man landscape. It's great fertile ground for day dreams, for creating stories and of course taking a walk with my dog who really needs to discover what is at the center of a given snow pile after the wind drifts everywhere in our neighborhood.
Like you I love the fall, to me it is a time to rest and enjoy other things that I enjoy besides digging in the dirt.
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