Autumn has fallen on us.
Or, at least the calendar says it has.
The weather hasn’t quite changed completely yet, though.
We had a little tease of fall — a false fall as some folks call it — a few weeks ago. Then, we reverted right back to the heat, humidity and air you can wear we are all too familiar with and accustomed to in Southeast Georgia. After the long, torrid summer, fall can't get here soon enough.
I love fall and I am ready for it to arrive.
Fall and spring are my two favorite seasons of the year and we have a grand total of about two days of each in these here parts. You know what I mean. Fall (and spring) days where it is just right. Not too hot. Not too cold.
Here are some of the things I like about fall.
• Cool weather. Can I get an amen!? That goes without saying, but I said it anyway. The cool mornings and warm afternoons are just right for me.
It hasn’t gotten to the point I can completely turn my air conditioning off just yet, but during the nights and wee hours, I can pull up my cover sheet. Hints of the coming winter will be on the way soon. The air seems crisp and not as hazy. It certainly doesn’t feel as heavy as it has over the summer. In the mornings and the late evenings, mists hang low over the fields and along the runs of the creeks and sloughs and branches. The dog fennels and golden rod are getting ready to bloom. My grandparents always said that was an indication that a killing frost wasn’t far away. Both grandparents also talked about being able to tell what kind of winter we were going to get judging by the coats on livestock and the thickness of tree bark. I wish I could remember the details, but I am ashamed to say I didn'’t listen close enough.
• Football. We won’t speak of our high school allegiances, other than to say, I pull for the Bears all but one week of the season. I love my Bulldogs and there is nothing quite like a Saturday in Athens between the hedges at Sanford. It was a wonderful experience to enjoy a game with my Daddy and brother and sister in year’s past. Mama doesn’t care much about it — until she watches it. Then, she gives color analysis. I've had the honor of watching a hometown kid, Stetson Bennett IV, play there. His is a remarkable, likely never-to-be-duplicated story. He was told he would never play at that level and he did that and more. He won two national championships. How ‘bout them Dawgs!
• Sights and scents. I’ve spoken about this already. I like seeing the mists in the mornings and evenings. I love the golden and orange hues. I care nothing about Halloween, though. I don’t like anything about pumpkins. I enjoy the smell of coffee brewing, of pecans roasting, of wood smoke rising. I love the aroma of fresh dug peanuts.
Coffee brewing is a great scent on a cold morning. It took me most of my life to acquire a taste for it, however. Still, I like a little bit of coffee with my cream and sugar.
When I was growing up, we lived in the old Haire homeplace, that was more recently owned by Uncle Dan and Aunt Maude Deal. The stately old farm house was guarded by towering, majestic chestnut oaks.
I thought back on those sights and sounds, too, and the fun my brother and sister and I had there.
It makes me want to go and jump into a pile of just raked leaves.
Happy fall, y’all!
• Jason Deal is News Editor for The Blackshear Times. Reach him at [email protected] ews.
