Autumn

Last week it was summer.  The very last week of summer.  An amazing, long, sunshiny, beautiful summer.  The kind that kids remember for years and years to come, that will be raised as the pinnacle of what a ‘good’ summer should be.  Days at the beach.  Iceblocks for afternoon tea.  Sprinkler play on a hot afternoon.  Lots and lots of sun and hardly any rain.  After all, kids aren’t too worried about the farmers crops, they just lap up the idyllic feel of a seriously hot summer.

Last week was the end of summer.

But today?  Today is Autumn.  I’ve been waiting for it to arrive, expecting it for some time, wondering how long it would be before the air starts to turn crisp and the leaves change from green to hues of red, gold, and brown.

Today.

Autumn is here.  The leaves are starting to turn, the breeze is definitely southerly, and suddenly (thanks to daylight savings changing back), the evenings are shorter.

In the last week of summer what did we do?  Nothing much.  You’d think that such a long and glorious summer should end with celebrations, acknowledgment of the sunshine, the beach, the evening song of the blackbird.  But no, we just carried on with our lives, as we are prone to do. 

We bought clothes, had haircuts, visited with a couple of friends, and spent time with family.  Nothing out of the ordinary.  We didn’t even spend much time outside in this last week of summer.  I think we were a little bit jaded by the sun.  Three solid months was enough.

I think we’ve been waiting for autumn.  Waiting for better sleep.  Sleep under a blanket, perhaps.  Sleep without a fan. 

And yet, autumn has never been my favourite season.  It heralds winter, and I don’t like winter much at all.  Oh, don’t get me wrong, I like clean, crisp air and snuggling up under a dozen blankets with my hotwater bottle and my “Hottie” (aka Hubby!) at night.  But I hate being cold almost every day.  My internal thermostat is a little bit wobbly and requires external sun-support.  Grin.

But still, I am bored with summer.  It is time for autumn, time for change.  Time to dig my garden and rake up some big, crunchy bags of leaves.  Time to put away our sunhats and sunscreen and fish our long sleeved tops out of storage.

Autumn is here.  It's time.

Amy