Autumn

As the first leaves start to change in early October I begin to anticipate the full richness of the colour

At first, there are only a few early adopters and I get anxious for more. There is always a brief moment when Mother Nature loses her mind and reverts to summer weather for a day or two, but that quickly passes and all the trees seem to transform overnight. I am a menace on the road for those few days as my eyes wander across the landscape taking it all in. I exclaim as I go around each bend wishing I had thought to bring my camera along, or that I had the time to stop and wait for the right angle of sun.

In my mind, I plan to come back the next day, or at least soon. I envision a perfect shot down a leaf covered gravel lane with the bright canopy of branches reaching out to touch across the road spilling the red, gold and orange together.

In my younger years, I wrote a haiku that I recite to myself every fall. Pardon my self-indulgence as this is likely the only place it will ever be published.

The trees in autumn

With no sense of modesty

Disrobe before us.

As I have now witnessed many (many) autumns I have become wise to Mother Nature and the fact that this time of golden perfection is fleeting, that often I plan to do more than I can achieve, but that the ultimate joy is in the seeing of the splendour in the first place.

As I drive there are certain trees I look out for, certain vistas I make time to detour to see. I put in the effort to soak it in to retain the beauty for another year.

Writing this I can look out at a maple in our own yard that is covered in most perfect deep red, burnt umber colour. I’ve taken photos of it but mostly I stare and wonder at the effort trees put into giving us this show.

Sadly these are the days when nighttime darkness falls early and when I finally have a day I might jump in the car to chase my dream photo, it dawns wet dreary and cold. Oh well, I think, I can try tomorrow.

All too soon the days slip by and all of the leaves are down. Some years I am more successful than others at achieving this photo of my dreams. Each time I remind myself that no photo really catches the entirety of the feeling of a crisp autumn day.

My point to all of this is that all moments are fleeting. The wild transformation of the hardwoods is Mothers way of reminding us to grab and enjoy that beauty while we can. To get out and play in it, take the photos, jump in the raked up piles of leaves, greedily store up the memories because tomorrow it may be windy and rainy and it is all over for another year.

But it returns, every year, and the anticipation of the season is part and parcel of why we love it.

Seasons change, And So Do I

The other great thing about autumn is that it heralds the first stirrings of the Christmas season. As I unpack sweaters and boots I also quietly start using a Christmas mug or two, I secretly stash a few gifts, and I write list after list. As I let go of the leaves I anticipate the cold winds and warm fires. Oh, how I love the rotation of the seasons.

My birthday is in December, so as we break into joyous celebration I am marking a personal new year. I put last year to bed with the leaves and open myself up to a new year wrapped in a blanket of snow.

I feel so lucky to live in Canada where we experience the changes of seasons so dramatically. There is no avoiding the reminders that each year the world is reborn in the spring, cavorts across summer, fades in autumn, and sleeps through winter.

I believe if we adopt some of that to ourselves we can benefit from it. Our busy lives do not allow us to hibernate like a bear but there are so many ways we can mark the passing of the seasons and time.

And Now, We blog

As Emma has already explained we have been talking about doing this blog for a long time. Our conversations about Christmas never really end. Even in January we are still discussing what we did and noting ideas for next year. In the hottest parts of the summer I run my hands through the sage plants in the garden and dream of turkey and stuffing and gravy. Keeping a spark alive is part of what makes it special.

Our efforts here are as much to record for ourselves all the ups and downs of the next few months as they are to spread our personal kind of obsession. It is ALL fleeting. When my kids were little I reminded myself every year, this is the only year they will be this exact age, next year they may want to do different things so enjoy this while you can. It seems like yesterday I was baking cookies and protecting the secrets and myths of Santa; now we all cook dinner together and stuff each other’s stockings. Emma has assumed some of the jobs that used to be mine. Her pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving was great! I don’t understand people who want things to stay the same, I love the adventure of watching my kids grow.

There are lots of people who dread the holiday season for a lot of reasons so I can appreciate that we may seem a little crazy. The holidays can be fraught with issues about families, or money, or even bad weather, and no one can do it all.  But I believe we can adapt our own celebrations to suit our circumstances. Part of what came up as Emma and I discussed this blog was the contrast between the city and country. How where you live can change how you celebrate. If you live in a city apartment you may not have anywhere to fit a huge tree, if you live in the country you may not get to see the spectacular store window displays. But you will still find comfort and joy where ever you are if you look for it.

The Christmas season is a busy one, and I am greedy to embrace all of the comfort and joy I can. But the wisdom of the my years means I know I won’t get every photo, I won’t make it to every market, I can’t possibly eat all the food (though I’ll give that one a good old try). But I can open my heart and my eyes to absorb as much as I can so that later in the dark days of winter I have a vast and deep ocean of memories to draw upon. I accept that as the years pass, things will change. Traditions will change, the world will change, and I can drink that all in too. And from there I will draw my comfort and revisit my joy.

We hope you can enjoy what we do here. I firmly believe lots of people want and need this kind of space. In this new digital world, this is how we share and make friends and enjoy a few minutes with a cup of tea and a shortbread. I invite you to like our page on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, and Pinterest!

With comfort and joy for all

– Nancy