autumn hike and ruminations

we hiked up lookout mountain the other morning, the three of us.  we took the longer route around and down, and it was good to be out in the woods together.  there were moments when she was on his back, or shoulders.  moments when I held her hand and skipped with her down the trail in a sneaky attempt to keep her moving.  the leaf litter was so thick in places that you could slide on top of it like you were skating, and it looked like a river of leaves.  I was often in the back, stopping every so often to look up and take it all in.  to add to my growing collection of colorful treasures in my hand.  I'm much like a little child this time of year, exclaiming over and over to everyone "look! just look! it's so beautiful! do you see that red? that yellow? wow!".  I get happily overwhelmed by the colors and smells and, well, the feels, of fall.

our hike was five days ago, a vibrant and perfectly blue and crisp fall morning.  and now I'm looking out the window at a world shrouded in grey, misty softness.  most of the trees have lost most of their leaves at this point, and our street is covered with the leaves of the large white oaks.  the shock-and-awe part of the season is coming to a close, making way for this other half of fall.  the softer, more subtle half that helps us slip into the coming season.  for the longest time, I wasn't much a fan of winter.  maybe because it meant my favorite time of year was coming to a close, maybe because of the shift in the light, which seemed abrupt and cruel when we moved the clocks around.  maybe because of the cold and the slushy grey.  well, now that is different.  mostly.  now I appreciate being able to see the bones of the mountains and the skeletons of the trees once the leaves have fallen to their terrestrial resting place.  I have come to embrace the earlier dark, and the way it calls us to come in and settle down sooner, giving us an excuse to pause, to slow down, to tend to ourselves and take the rest we need.  to make big pots of soup to share with friends over long dinners.

but.  we aren't quite there yet.  there is plenty of fall still to enjoy, of course.
and then there will be winter.  to also enjoy.