11.04.2015

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.

15 comments:

  1. And then there will be winter. To also enjoy. Indeed. :)

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  2. One of my favorite things about winter is that you can really see the lay of the land that is usually hiding behind the many leaves of the other seasons. We have a favorite place to snowshoe where the glaciers created an amazing collection of kettles, moraines, and pothole lakes. In summer you don't even notice the maze of steep ravines. Not a fan of the short days but I don't think I could live in a place that didn't have the 4 seasons.

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    1. exactly!

      that sounds amazing..... it's been a long time since I went snowshoeing, and never around here. maybe this year....

      agreed. LOVE the seasons. all of them, and the fact that I look so froward to each one and then by the time it is over I am ready, usually, for the next one!

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  3. Falling leaves and hot soup - great combo.

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  4. That sounds exactly like how our walks go, though sometimes my daughter is still in the carrier on my back. (At 30 pounds, she gives me quite the workout!) I am ready for settling into Winter, but we are having strange, almost summer like weather here right now.

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    1. it's definitely on again off again around here lately in terms of weather. we had a couple nights of frost and several nights in the 40s, and now lately it's been warmer again..... though I do have a fire going now as it is cooling down again a bit

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  5. You know just how I felt then, while I was there! Pockets constantly filled with nature treasures. I kept telling Lisa how amazing it all was as I oohed and ahhed.

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    1. I am much the same on a fall outing, even though I'm in it! I just get pleasantly overwhelmed by all of the colors :)

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  6. I love fall because of the colors and the cooler days, I love winter because I love to be cold, down to my bones. Then getting snuggly warm in woolens :)

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    1. I don't know about the cold down to my bones part, but I am definitely with you on the warming up that follows!

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  7. yes!! i am getting to that point as well. there is such a beauty in naked trees and the simplicity of winters palette :) i also love the chance to actually stop and rest after summer and fall's busy seasons.

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    1. and your description (of that shift of winter love) was so lovely! it really resonated with me.

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    2. thanks, Jenny~ I really am embracing it more. I look forward to the turning inward, and to the excuse to stop and slow down a bit.

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thanks for taking the time to read and comment~