Autumn In The Air

It's been a long while that I've been anywhere for fun.  No out-of-town jaunts in quite a while - and it will yet be quite a while more.  However, this isn't cause to bring me down.  No, indeed!  For I smell Autumn in the soft evening breeze!  And Autumn is definitely my favorite time of year.

Autumn is the promise of soft breezes and sweet birdsong. The mornings are brisker, the afternoons more enjoyable. Yes, there will be a time of rains as well, but that is another cause for celebration! 

How we humans could ever get along without Autumn, I would never know.  Thank you, Lord God, the Great Creator, for giving us the in-between days of Autumn - in-between the scorching heat and the seething cold, Autumn gently cradles us in her light embrace.  

When Autumn comes, I remember days of lying on the grass next to my mother after school, after snacks, after the house has settled down and all the others have gone to their rooms, as she and I watched lazy, drifting, plump clouds float by, naming them, giving them life and laughter....  what a fine time that was.  

When Autumn comes, I remember, too, times with girl friends and boy friends. I remember a sleepover with Dana P. and Kathy F. when we stayed up so late we ended up baking a cake during an attack of the "sillies" and I suddenly became the life of the party -- shy little me!  And once, in Autumn, just as school was starting up, I made a "date" to walk to the park with Tommy C. where he really surprised me with his tenderness and kindness.  We climbed up the metal tower on the playground equipment and sat visiting about nothing much in particular - just our common likes and dislikes, our simplistic goals and dreams.  I liked him very much that day, but I truly fell in love with him on another date in Autumn - a couple of years later - when he pretended to have a "chaw" of tobacco between his teeth and gums (as all 'proper' cowboy singers must) while he rocked out to whatever country-western song was playing on the radio at the time.  He was so fun - and funny - that he stole my heart - and I've not found it yet!  I'm sure that, by now, he has a real collection of stolen hearts -- wonder what he's doing with them all. Perhaps he's got them in a display cabinet.  If so, mine shines golden and soft, with just a hint of pink in the foundation -- that's the bond I have with Autumn!