The Leaves of Fall

I recently re-discovered my blog. After spending almost an hour trying to gain access to my account, I figured that I might as well create a new post. Either that or go to sleep before midnight and avoid getting very drowsy around 2 p.m. tomorrow. But alas, the universe continues to expand, the earth keeps spinning, and each second of my life is ticking away...so why waste it by sleeping.

My posting today is about....time. I saw that my first post was back in January of 2010. So much has happened since then--personal as well as professional changes have taken place. And as I left the subway station today and drove home, I had the windows open and enjoyed the cool air. As I was waiting at a red light, I noticed the trees nearby and saw how some leaves changed from their dark green to a bright yellow. And I thought to myself "ahh....it's fall again."

Usually I look forward to the fall with such excitement especially up here in the northeast; the explosion of colorful leaves, the crisp air, apple picking, and the beginning of the holiday season ( a far different experience than growing up in the hood in Houston). But something feels different this year.

But it's not a "bad" different ...it's not like what William Butler Yeats wrote in "The Wild Swans at Coole," or what John Keats wrote in "To Autumn."


Instead of lamenting on the passing of the season (and of time) as if it were an inevitable hopelessness to accept, the feeling I have is more of a reminder how precious it is to have each season, each day, each hour to spend. I admit, the fall is my favorite season, but what if I try to accept each season on its own merits? The fall brings great foliage and weather...and I'll accept it and appreciate it for that. Then the winter will eventually arrive and I will enjoy the snow, the hot cups of chocolate, and the stinging cold on my face. Then the spring and then the summer will come again and we will all take advantage of what they bring.

Maybe we can accept and appreciate the seasons for what they are instead of complaining about what they are not. If that's possible, then maybe we could learn to accept and appreciate each moment we have on this wonderful planet. So let's buy a pumpkin to carve, let's down a few Kit Kat bars, let's get dressed for Halloween. Let's spend the morning making pancakes with the kiddos, let's spend an afternoon watching college football, let's spend the evening with the ones we love. Let's act like adults when we have to, but let's act like kids when we don't....and maybe we can appreciate each day of each season. I guess this is why I like the following quote:

"You aren't just the age you are.
You are all the ages you have ever been."
-Kenneth Koch