Meditation on Fall

There is a harmony
In autumn, and a lustre in its sky,
Which through the summer is not heard or seen,
As if it could not be, as if it had not been!
Percy Bysshe Shelley

Despite the calendar, it’s not quite fall yet in Beaufort. Most leaves are still green (or greenish; although we’ve had rain recently, it’s been a dry summer) and still tenaciously clinging to trees. Teachers and students have returned to schools, which is a key sign of the fall. And, blessedly, the fall brings with it cooler temperatures and lower humidity, like God’s gift to us who have survived the summer.
Today’s weather is beautiful. The sun does lend a special luster to the sky, and the breeze calls me outside, to walk along the waterfront and enjoy the cool air. Fall’s a special time of year to me; I love the crispness in the air in the early mornings, and the slight bite to it late at night at the fall moves on to winter. And I love to see my favorite sign of fall: that silly dog that lives at my house, stretched out in the backyard, nose to the wind and tail ruffling along behind.
Fall has always seemed like a restorative time to me. Instead of dying leaves, I find in the fall the seeds of renewal, so that after gathering our strength in the winter months, we may burst into full flower in the spring. The seasonal changes are like a gift from God: a week or two of stunning color, a blaze of glory, and then the rest…the Sabbath of the year. This fall, may we all find rest, restoration, renewal as the season changes.