Fall

Today there is a new chill in the September air where I live as well as a personal joy as I wish my son Conan a very happy birthday.

Yesterday and the day before it was the last blast of summer with high heat and humidity. But now, there is a familiar aroma of change as well as an expectation in the air.

The air has the crispy fragrance of dried leaves coupled with a peppery component of organic sweetness. It is earthy and it's the smell of fresh fallen leaves. The dampness of a passing shower adds to the aroma.

Even the gentlest of breezes in the last several days have sent showers of yellow and red leaves to the ground in a rustle of clicks and crunches as they crash into one another and bump along the ground. They announce their presence with every human step and every zepher that moves their sound to a new location.

I remember the scent and sound of fall from childhood. We jumped into huge piles of raked leaves.

Eventually some adult would light the leaves into a small smoking pyre. The aroma was unmistakable and enjoyable. The expectation then and now was that it would soon get colder. 

Fall’s color is not only the harbinger of a season’s change, it is a reminder of the joy of the end times in life.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.