If you were to take a poll among your inner circle, what season would be their favorite? I can only speak for myself. Without a doubt, fall is number one with a bullet. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, autumn is filled with effervescent colors and a crispness in the air. Our summers are dry, hot and smoky these days. The lack of precipitation gives way to the more familiar rain and storms that we’re accustomed to. Heat waves, forest fires, droughts, and earlier sunrises seemingly change overnight here into steam rising off the rooftops as frost evaporates into the morning sky. No more Air conditioning, it’s time to close the windows of the house and fire up the slumbering heater. As a parent, we have longed for the alone time that comes with the beginning of the school year. Pour yourself a cup of hot cocoa and I will explain how this under-appreciated quarter snatches the title of ‘Best Season’.
With cascading autumn leaves, the time has ultimately come to tell the lawnmower to “Kick rocks!” Yes, raking could be considered as tedious, back-breaking labor to some. As a glass half-full, father of two young kids, I think raking leaves is cathartic, temporary, and way better than the constant weeding that accompanies spring and summer. Fall appeases all types of people. From the new seasonal coffee cups at local cafes to the hunting and fishing seasons that open, fall has it all. The gourds are back in town! Taking the family to a pumpkin patch for a hayride or over-indulging in pumpkin spiced everything. Living in my area, we see beautiful flocks of migratory birds flying in formation over our homes. Meanwhile, if you are a fan of mindless television, the new fall line-up will surely fill that void in your life. Instead, try to go outside and take a walk in your local wooded area for a stroll and a bit of reflecting. Having now reached my quota of virtue signaling people that watch television, I long for this time of year to begin watching my favorite teams and expertly craft my fantasy sports rosters.
After four months of predictable forecasts, I hum along to the tune in my head ‘It’s beginning to look a lot like weather.’ The sound of rain that brings much-needed life to the parched earth, is the real music that we can hear. Pockets! Oh baby, pockets! The colder weather allows us to put on our jackets to keep us warm, yadda yadda yadda… Coats offer the storage for our phones, wallets, keys, etc. In the summer, you can see me walking around town in my overstuffed shorts looking like a Mountie. In fall, I catch myself gazing up at the mountains after a fresh dusting of snow, where I think of past ski trips, while conveniently forgetting the ‘yard sales’ I left on the slopes upon crashing. Typically, this time of year is storm season for us in British Columbia. With the wind, rain and for me personally the possibility of snow, brings a real appreciation for the shelter we are fortunate enough to have over our heads. On the rare occasion that the sun graces us with its presence, it unveils an impossibly clear and vibrantly blue sky, without all the smoke and smog of the Summer.
In Canada, we have our Thanksgiving holiday in the beginning of October. Yet we still watch all the American Thanksgiving traditions from a distance. The scents emanating from the family oven on Thanksgiving are infatuating. Getting together with family on a blustery evening in October is like chicken soup for the soul. Thanksgiving for us, leads into Halloween. Our kids love to start planning their costume ideas far in advance. On Hallows Eve, we get together with our parent friends to chaperon our children around the neighborhood. Us adults, travel coffee mugs filled with “Cheer” in tow, help the kids ‘carpet bomb’ the area in search for petite morsels of individually wrapped future dental visits. We follow the door to door begging with a large firework display at the local park. Remembrance Day (Canada) and Veteran’s Day (US) are holidays that are on November 11th, they are a great way to ground yourself and be thankful to Veterans that have sacrificed for your ability to enjoy any season, let alone this one. Following that, comes the best time of them all… The Christmas holiday season. People attribute the Christmas season with winter, but merely four days before Christmas are actually in winter.
I may not be able to convert everyone to the ‘fall is the best season’ cause. Hopefully, if you didn’t like autumn before, you can find some newfound beauty in it. For the rest of you that look forward to this time of year and all it has to offer, soak it in. Most of all, get out there and go for a nice fall walk, take a deep breath of that fresh cool air, and embrace the moment.
