First Day of Fall??

Today is the first day of September. While summer doesn’t officially end until mid September, you would typically think of September as a fall month. At least around here. I know further south it probably stays hot for a bit longer. Labor Day may be considered the unofficial end of summer – one last three day weekend to get out and enjoy things before the cold comes.

When you live with four distinct seasons, sometimes the calendar doesn’t matter. You can have days that feel like the various seasons almost all year. I mean you aren’t going to get a “winter” day in July anymore than you are going to get a “summer” day in December. But you can easily have “fall” days long before the calendar says it is fall.

And sometimes you can have multiple seasons in a single day. This morning was “fall”. The temperatures had dropped and there was no humidity in the air. By the afternoon, we were back to something more like “summer”. Still not a lot of humidity but the temperatures and sun made it feel much more like summer.

I’m clearly a huge fan of summer and these late summer days bring a certain sadness. The fall colors are pretty and all but it is really just the last gasp of the leaves as they die off and we move into the dark grey of winter. Still, I can’t say that I don’t enjoy those first couple of cool mornings.

And when there is no humidity, sitting in the shade is a great way to pass the time. I did get a chance to sit for a bit and do some reading and watch the birds fly around to the various feeders. We took a walk a little later and saw a few more turtles than normal. I think they appreciated things not being in the 90s. Soon, we won’t see them at all as they go into winter mode and stay under water until we get back to spring.

But I’ve learned that you can’t stop things from changing. Summer will turn into fall which will turn into winter. And I’ve learned that cursing the season you don’t like doesn’t make it any easier to take. I’ve got my ways of dealing with winter but I think it is also important to acknowledge that there is beauty in each season as the quote above says.

I know summer will not fade just yet. This morning was just a reminder that it will end. Like March, this is a transition month. By the end of the month, we’ve really seen the last of the long stretches of hot weather. There will be less green around. And there will be fewer and fewer days where you can just go outside without worrying about how many layers to wear.

Of course, at some point, I’ll be looking for that freeze to kill off all the weeds that make this time of year a pain for those of us who are allergic to various things. See I guess there is something good about cold weather.