Can you find joy on this day of changing seasons? I hope so. If you're in Wisconsin, it's made easier for you -- our weather is just beautiful. Sunshine and crisp breezes, a gentle ebbing of a summer mood, our faces turned now toward the golden colors of autumn.
For me, the first day of Fall also brings up memories of my older girl's wedding -- one that took place nine years ago on this day. The weather then was partly this, partly that, but it did in the end deliver that solid display of cloud and sky, sun and gusty winds. A stunning day, filled with happy moments, with love, with the welcoming of that next season in life. (And now, with three kids in tow, the young couple can celebrate so much more!)
I can't say that I spent this morning well, in that I did not fully take in the beauty of the moment. It was one of those internet sucky things -- meaning, I began to do some research on masks and travel. Talk about going down a rabbit hole! Every time I explore this issue, changes have been made -- to the requirements, to safety considerations, to the marketing and regulating of this essential component of our pandemic response. It should not be this hard to come up with an authentically safe and comfortable product. But it is. Five hours later, the day has moved from morning to afternoon -- all those lovely first-day-of-fall hours spent on the couch, except for the morning walk to feed the animals...
... and the pause to eat breakfast with Ed. Inside.
And guess what -- I briefly turned on the heat! Because it was chilly in the house, but really mostly to test the furnace. Shockingly, it was not broken! (On the other hand, the washing machine needed a fix today. It refused to dispense cold water. We are on track to set a record in terms of the number of mechanical devices needing a repair this week. Let me add to it my computer -- which I take over to a repair shop so that they can finally fix the "t" problem. No more missing "t"s! -- for now.)
In the afternoon I do step out for a good, long-ish stroll. My welcome to fall walk. Each season has its magic. Autumn rolled out an impressive opening act. Very impressive!
Evening: I love this time of day! When the kids were growing up, evenings could be a lonely thing. After dinner, the kids worked, most often in their rooms, or went out with friends. The grownups -- well, some of us were lost to work as well. It's hugely different now: for Ed and me, evenings are sacred shared couch time. Sometimes we lose ourselves in some independent project, he on his laptop, I on mine, but there is always a big chunk of time when we converge, almost always over a movie or a show. With popcorn. Ed will return to his stuff later, much later, often working into the wee hours of the night. But evenings belong to the both of us.
The moon is out, the night has a taste of winter to it. Autumn stuff. Beautiful autumn stuff.
