Fall has arrived in my corner of the world. The morning air - crisp, thin, reminding me of palest Chardonnay gives way to the smoky, mesquite air of dusk. The leaves of the trees have begun to turn. We see small patches of color, a few leaves here and there, like the glimpse of skin at the ?v? of a neckline or the slit of a skirt. The trees clinging to the green of summer, trying to restrain the final burst of flame ? red, gold, purple, orange.
There is something about this time of year. I do love summer with its promise of long days, lush fruits and trips to the beach. There is nothing like fresh snowfall on a perfect winter day. I have experienced moments in the spring, standing on my front lawn, when I feel I have stepped into the middle of an impressionist painting. The colors of spring are so surreal, the brightest green dotted with the purples, yellows and pinks of tulips, pansies and daffodils. But no season stirs such a deep feeling inside me as fall.
Perhaps it is my Celtic blood, the same blood that moved an ancient people to celebrate the dawning of a new year at the end of October. The festival of Samhain, celebrated on the new year?s eve, a night when the line blurred between our world and the world of the spirits. A night of bonfires and rites used by the priests to commune with the spirits of the dead in an effort to bring good luck for the coming year and a night of costumes donned to scare away evil spirits. How I long for Halloween. How I missed it as a witness! I can?t wait to walk with my son at Halloween. Despite the Power Ranger costume and mini candy bars, I feel the ancient rhythms in the walk, the carving of pumpkins, the costumes and decorations.
Don?t be fooled by spring and summer for rebirth is still birth, so much to learn, a couple of adolescents with nothing but sex and rock and roll on the brain. Fine for a time, but you gotta grow up. And winter?s silence, tight lipped and final, cannot be broken. Your only chance is fall, for the season possesses the answers to the mysteries of life, if you can hold still long enough to hear them whispered in your ear.
Happy Halloween!