Here Comes Jack Frost!

Well, not quite, though it did get down into the upper 40s here last night. All the trees are turning and there is a riot of color on ‘my’ mountain. The leaves aren’t quite as good as the past couple of years, and I’ve been told that is because the drought has broken this year. Apparently, leaves are brighter in drought years. But they are still gorgeous.

When it first gets cold, I react the same way most native Southerners do: with complete and utter horror. What is this strange temperature? What happened to my heat? But then I adjust and I find that I like it when the mornings are a bit nippy and that I sleep better when the nights are cool. I started the process of unpacking my winter wardrobe and packing up my summer clothes this morning. My bed is covered in sweaters, each one of them adored. The question is, which shall I wear first? Yes, I am a clothes horse. Last night I made chicken and dumplings to celebrate the turning of the seasons. I made them the old-fashioned way: slow-simmering from scratch.

One of the other good things about the fall is that when the temperatures cool down, the cold-weather vegetables really begin to shine. I had my first really good fall salad with the dumplings last night. Red leaf lettuce, swiss chard, nuts, dried cranberries and ranch dressing. It was incredible.

This is the time of the year between the frantic bustle of the harvest and the slow pace of winter. Things are busy, but less so than in August and September. I have more time to write but am not overwhelmed with free time. Samhain is on the horizon and with it the new year. We are beginning to deepen into the dark half of the wheel. The mess in our world is also deepening but I am unafraid; the dark must always precede the dawn, and winter the spring.

Peace, and blessed be!