This was last night.
This. This happened today.
Veteran's Day. In the neighborhood.
Midweek.
Last weekend. At
gladsome.
Do you sense a theme here? This is my fall. My regular readers may have noticed that my seasonal
pictures have been conspicuously few. Few, that is, until now.
You see, I haven't posted my fall here because I have been deep
within my fall.
Within the season that is outdoors, and
within myself.
Early in October,
this weekend to be exact, I had an aha moment that fundamentally shifted how I experienced this season. I had checked out a local fall festival to see if we would want to go. Cost was $6 per person. They touted their huge leaf pile.
A huge leaf pile?
Aha. At that moment I deeply recognized that there was much more to fall than buying an afternoon of jumping in someone else's leaf pile. I decided that this fall we would live
within it. Every bit of it. Chilly. Rainy. Sunny. Brilliant. Golden. Sure we would still enjoy special traditions, some that even cost money. But our fall wouldn't be limited to these special days. Our fall would be felt everyday, whether we were wearing short sleeves and sunglasses (thankfully those days were many) or bundled up in hats and gloves playing at the park well into dusk or getting soaked while taking a walk in the rain. We would be within all of it.
And the decision to be
within has made all of the difference. I have breathed deeply. I have looked to the sky in its vast array of colors and clouds. I have said yes to playing in the rain. I have corralled the kids outside day after day after day. I have corralled myself outside to at least feel the fall air on my face, look up to the sky, and appreciate the trees in their ever-changing display. I have given up naps, chores, blogging, and so much more to simply be out of doors looking and smelling and touching and feeling. Feeling so good. I have truly been within fall. And therefore within myself, changing in subtle substantive ways.
So my dozens of days, my hundreds of pictures, are here. In this one post. Because, my friends, you now understand I've been quite busy within.
Last Sunday.
A rainy day. There were few, save for Sandy. It never fails that I wear these shoes when it rains. It never fails that I forget that water leaks through the bottoms of them.
Four weeks ago. A glorious day, we simply had to forgo a nap attempt.
Almost Halloween. Riding with the windows -- and my hair -- down. Could anything feel so good?
The night we ate al fresco. In our very own leaf pile.
During Hurricane Sandy. Luckily little damage where we live, but days and days of rain. So we simply called it a hurricane hike.
October 12th. The day my aha took hold.
Early October. Discovering how brilliant fall looks through magenta colored glasses.
October 16th. A walk to school. We were so very late. It was so very worth it.
Three weeks ago. The afternoon was terribly chilly and not a soul in sight, except the man blowing the leaves into piles. It was magical in its quiet and we ventured into the woods a bit and were surrounded by gold. What I would have missed if the cold had kept me inside.
A Friday night. Munchkin was shivering so much he couldn't climb down. It took much coaxing and catching to finally get him back on solid ground.
Early November. Digging in the sand. In gloves.
Tonight. Sunset.
