Autumn

I have always loved autumn. It is definitely my favorite time of year. There are so many reasons why but somehow they have changed throughout the decades.

Many years ago I enjoyed this season because of football. Now don't get me wrong, I know nothing about football. And I have no desire to sit and watch grown men tackle each other simply for the sake of determining who can have possession of a little brown ball. No. I like football because of the crowd. However, I was fortunate enough that the star football player at my school not only went to college on a football scholarship, he also was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts. Needless to say, he was good. And because of his awesomeness, football games were intense. And who doesn't want to cheer for a winning team. The memories I have from the sideline of our high school games make me revel the season all the more.

Later in life, autumn became synonymous with back to school. For most people this doesn't sound like much fun but for me school was my safe haven. It also was a break in my work schedule. I worked several jobs and several hours during my college career. And I proudly admit that I paid for every semester of my higher education out of pocket. I have no college debt or student loans. The only to do this was to work and work a lot. When my class schedule arrived in the mail it was sight for sore—and tired—eyes. I knew my class schedule would be light compared to my work schedule. And, of course, going back to school meant being one more year closer to my goal of being the first in my family to graduate from college.

After that graduation I became an adult. A working adult. Which, for me, meant back to school again. But this time I was on the other side of the desk. Most teachers I know dread August due to losing their summer. But for me, it was just another opportunity to use my gifts in teaching students. I loved being in the classroom no matter what time of the year.

Then I got married. And with that came the fact that I was always pregnant. Or at least it seemed like I was always pregnant. So autumn became my favorite time of year because it was finally sweater weather. (For those of you not from this region of the United States, “sweater weather” is when the temperature are finally starting to cool off to the point when in the evening one must put on—you guessed it!—a sweater.) Wearing this extra layer of clothes gave me the chance to cover up my baby bump and, more importantly, my post-baby bump.

But this year, I am enjoying autumn for an entirely different reason. This year, now that we are home owners, it means yard work. In the fall I get to go out to the new flower garden to cut back all of the blooms, plant bulbs and put down mulch. Again, for most people, this doesn’t sound like like much fun. But again, I am not like most people. I love to mulch. It has nothing to do with the hard painstaking job. It has more to do with the fact that I have the ability, the resources, the time to mulch. Growing up we never had the opportunity to spend time or money on our yard. So now that I can, I love it. It brings some form of contentment to me.

The years may change. The reasons may change. The leaves, of course, change. But for me, one thing is still the same I love this time of year no matter the explanation.