Autumn Anticipation

I get really excited about autumn. It’s my favorite season, without a question, and it never lasts long enough. I sipped my first pumpkin spice latte of this fall mid-August, while browsing in a local furniture and decor store. They are already displaying their autumnal merchandise, and it inspired me to come home and get out my fall decor. My roommates think it’s a little early, but they are tolerating my mood. I believe there’s a subtle difference between tolerating something and embracing something, but that’s okay.  

Call me crazy, impatient, or just a little overly enthusiastic, but fall makes me happy. There’s a video on Youtube that I feel a kinship with. The lady is so exuberant in her love of and anticipation for fall; she’s a true kindred spirit (let’s overlook the fact that she’s only an actress). It’s the little things in life that delight people like us. And our delight in those little things is slightly more, um, shall we say: obvious, than it is in the average person. That’s okay with us. We’re okay with being a little eccentric and odd- well, part of the time.

If you need some fall reading to go with your next Pumpkin Spice Latte, check out “When the Frost is on the Punkin” by James Whitcomb Riley. I love this poem and actually memorized it once upon a time. It has such an irresistible rhythm, and besides, it really captures the best of the season.  You can read it online at https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44956/when-the-frost-is-on-the-punkin

I bought an adorable pair of light brown boots at the mall this summer. They have heels, which make boots so much more feminine, stylish, sophisticated. They were on clearance for seven dollars! One of those finds that is unexpected and blissfully fun. Even so, I was quite indecisive as to whether or not to buy them. I decided yes, and I’m so glad I did. It was a great thing to spend some tip money on. Those boots- my brown dresses- fuzzy sweaters and scarves… autumn colors are my happy. They are warm and cozy colors, reminiscent of the autumn that we as humans long for, but so often are deprived of, in this fast-paced, modern, urban world. 

There was a time when pumpkins grew in backyard gardens, rather than being mass produced for shopping centers. Fall foliage was a natural part of life, instead of being a weekend sightseeing trip. When was the last time you walked among the goldenrod and asters; how long has it been since you experienced the satisfaction of picking up buckets of apples? 

Harvest is the gift given to us at the end of summer. For while we can help in the work of harvest, we cannot produce it. Only God can do that. Nevertheless, our souls are fed by being a part of the transformation from seed to fruit. I do realize that we can’t all experience harvest, and thus, autumn, as it was meant to be experienced. I have no garden this year. My home happens to be an apartment, and my yard is basically a parking lot. The same is true for multitudes of people in the world. But even when our circumstances don’t allow for an ideal picture of fall, let us not forget what it really is. Harvest= a gift, a provision, needs met. In the spring, hope is sown. In the autumn, that hope is fulfilled. And we are thankful. 

It’s going to be easy for me to become overwhelmed during these next several months. My schedule has been busy, and I am the kind of person that gets overwhelmed far too easily. Will I make a conscious choice to savor the sights, sounds, and smells of autumn? Will I enjoy the tastiness of Pumpkin Spice Time? May I not be too distracted to fully delight in this most beautiful time of the year! 

To Do List for Fall 2020 

1. Order pumpkin spice lattes from the nearby coffee shops. 
2. Be intentionally grateful. 
3. Go somewhere I’ve never been to see fall foliage.
4. Listen to fall folk music.
5. Visit an actual pumpkin farm. 
6. Scrapbook a “Favorites” page for fall.
7. Write a fall-themed piece of poetry. 
8. Bake a pumpkin pie (or several!).
9. Read something new.
10. Remember to embrace the moments.