Autumn Transitions

How did you spend the last day of early autumn? Did you think it was summer? Did your family forgive you those many hours of drinking and watching the Squirrely Cardinals? Did you picnic in Forest Park? Did you see a play or perhaps the Monet (exhibit)? On Sunday, October 16, the temperature reached 81 degrees F., with balmy Southwest breezes and high, thin cirrus clouds. Sure, Dave, Mike, or Cindy might promise you one more day like this, but 3:00p.m. that day was a transition. The Japanese through Haiku, celebrate three sections for each season. Each season has early, middle, and late phases. Each phase, in turn, has a "kigo" or nature reference, e.g., the warbler in early summer, the cuckoo in mid-summer, and the skylark in late summer. October 16 marked the transition from early to middle Autumn. At 3:00p.m. the wind turned from southwest to west. It turned again at 6:00p.m. from west to northwest. It turned again at 9:00p.m., blowing strongly from the north and banished the few remaining clouds. With no cloud cover, the earth shivered down to 47 degrees F. The birds continue their migration down the Mississippi Flyway. The students struggle with concepts before mid-term markings. The restaurants change their menus to a harvest theme. Of course the leaves change color and fall, fall, fall while you rake, rake, rake, or blow, blow, blow. Pull out those mothballed sweaters and head out into that crisp, mid-autumn air!