I am in love with this time of year! It helps that we have been experiencing the most perfect weather possible, 80 degrees with an occasional crispness in the air that takes me back to my childhood. I love this time even more than Christmas, because there is no chaos in the stores yet, or depressing, freezing, endless snow! That’s why Halloween time nearly beats Christmas time in my mind. I have often declared to Pace that Halloween is so much fun for me, and I get this excitement in my heart when I feel that day approaching. (Just ask Rachel how excited I was to take Chase trick-or-treating last year!)
Why do I feel this way about this time of year? It’s hard to pinpoint the exact reason. Maybe it’s just because I love candy so much. Or it could be because the weather and festivities remind me of the excitement of back-to-school time (back when I was excited about school), smoky fire smell in the cool air, crunchy leaves, carving pumpkins, Halloween decor and parties, and, of course, all the fun of trick-or-treating! I happen to have the best parents who would let us be whatever we wanted for Halloween and I would get to wear mom’s makeup since I always wanted to be something dainty! We would trick-or-treat with our cousins for as long as we wanted and then return home to trade candy and eat all that we wanted and then we would fall asleep late due to all the sugar and glee! See, no wonder I have such great feelings associated with this time of year!
Fall is most certainly my favorite season, and for the past couple of weeks I have repeatedly felt the urge to stop by my all-time favorite store (Rodworks) to see what kinds of autumn decor they have on display. Don’t worry, though, I’ve only gone once and I haven’t bought anything (yet); I just love to enter the store, soak in the beauty of it all, and let my heart experience that fleeting, superficial happiness that only a store you love can lend!
To further illustrate my autumn sentiments, I would like to quote the eloquent words of Pace’s cousin (from her blog):
“Lately the weather has finally, finally cooled down, and the mornings smell like Christmas, and Timpanogos has its first sprinkling of snow… And the past few days as I… think of the drives through the canyon to look at fall leaves and the unplanned parking lot snowball fights and the football games and the trick-or-treaters and the baking and decorating and loving and all of these things that are headed my way, I just can’t help it. My breath catches for just a second and then suddenly I inhale so quickly and deeply that my lungs are just about to explode and I get a miniature oxygen high and it’s as though my body needs all that excitement that is in the air to be inside me, immediately. And I don’t choose to do it but it just happens, and every time it thrills me to see how a feeling announces its presence so blatantly, making sure the rest of me doesn’t miss the fact that my heart is so delighted.” –Tracy K.