Falling into the Season Posted Aug-31-2006
Onset of September's Autumn
Yellow school busses are in full-swing on a morning schedule through our neighborhood. The school season has begun. The nights are growing cooler. Last night we slept with the windows open and the air conditioning turned off. Summer seems to be waning fast.

Walking on my favorite path by the lake I notice a difference in the air. The oak trees have acorn shells around them on the ground. The squirrels have been busy. The weedy/flowery fields have survived a hot summer and have come to a fruition period of their harvesting lives. Bright colors have been transformed into earthtone hues. I sense the changing season and feel the beginning of autumn upon us. September begins my favorite part of the year.

The dying off in nature — the cycle of life — is such a beautiful, wondrous event. I can't help but to reflect on what lesson there is in that for us. Witnessing the transformation of life each year is an expected truth we can't deny. Should we surrender to the forces of nature and know that we too are part of a magnificent plan to grow and transform into something beautiful? We all must arrive at the autumn in our own lives with the knowing that winter is next. We have no choice.

Three days ago I walked on the path by the lake in the rain with my friend. The rain was light but insistent and the air was too cool for the shorts I wore — despite my layering of a long-sleeved hooded shirt underneath my blue-hooded windbreaker that swished as I moved my arms as we walked. My friend and I walked briskly around the mile-long path that circled a lake hosting various geese and ducks — three times in the rain.

We walked and talked about many things as we usually do; but somehow the accompanying rain created a unique memory — a symbolic capsule in time — of the things we discussed as the rain slowly soaked through my windbreaker and shirt. The wetness on the earth amplified the surrounding sounds of cars from nearby roads and highways. The environment was different.

Over an hour later when we parted after our walk, the hair that my windbreaker hood could not protect was wet and stringy and my hooded shirt was completely soaked through. My bare legs were cold and I was tired. But as I drove home I felt completely satisfied with the experience I just had, of walking in the rain with my friend and falling into the new season upon us. I sometimes forget that I too am part of the transformation of life happening around me. I am a living part of something greater than myself. That conscious knowing is not only intriguing, but somehow comforting. •

© 2006 Chris Dunmire www.chrisdunmire.com. All rights reserved.