In various ways, autumn kind of resembles a wedding. It starts out lovely. Everyone looks beautiful & fresh. Smiles abound. Handshakes and hugs for everyone. The leaves start to turn various combinations of reds & yellows. There is a nice breeze that isn't cold yet isn't warm. People are chatting, long lost friends and relatives catching up. Ear-to-ear smiles appear on everyone's faces as the happy couple walks into the reception hall.
As the night goes on, the leaves start to fall off and it starts to get a bit colder. That crazy Uncle (we all have one!) has his shirt untucked, has lost his jacket and is doing some kind of dance that resembles a medical emergency. A couple at table 15 are clearly in an argument. We pretend they aren’t but they are. The temperature dips a bit but we call it fresh or crisp. We go on hikes and start drinking hot chocolate.
Snow tires start to appear. The words ‘wind chill’ start to appear in weather forecasts. The Grandparents are done for the night and hit the road. The DJ starts playing the music that nobody really wants to hear. Take your pick of YMCA, Mony Mony or We Are Family. The servers have cleared the tables of the dishes while the lights are dimmed.
Strong winds have forced the leaves to give up their death grip stripping the trees to barren skeletons. Perennials are trimmed back and mountains of leaf bags are left out at the curb. Suddenly that crazy Uncle has decided to give the wedding cake a try, precisely 20 minutes before the couple was scheduled to cut the cake.
It is clearly the end of fall and the beginning of another season.
And then this happens… snow fences go up
…and you know it may be time to call a cab.
Thanks for visiting.
THEbTEAM