Fall is in the air.  The temperature is usually in the 40’s when I walk in the mornings and yesterday, for the first time since February, the daily high was below 60.  Tom and I have been living in perpetual summer.  Coastal Georgia had an exceptionally mild winter with daily temperatures above 60 from February on.  Starting in March, the temperature was climbing into the 80’s.  We have been living in those kinds of temperatures ever since.  Until the last two weeks.

I used to love fall.  It was my favorite time of year.  People always talk about the beauty of the leaves in the Smokys and in New England.  I think the leaves in Ohio rival anyplace else in autumn.  I love the brilliant colors and the cooling temperatures.  When the early morning sun hits the orange leaves of the maple tree just right – spectacular!

I still love those aspects of fall.  But now, when the temperatures start plunging, I can only think “winter is coming.”  The arthritis in my hips gets worse and my hands stay perpetually cold.  This year I’ve noticed my knuckles aching and being stiff:  arthritis moving to my hands.  Tom and I have escaped winter the last six years by heading south.  We plan on doing that again this year – one way or another.  But, in the meantime, we get to enjoy a wonderful fall.

I am trying to dwell in the moment and not dread the season to come.  Fall is so beautiful and this is the first year in the last six that we have been in Ohio in October.  I delight in each brilliantly colored tree I see.  I thank God for the cool mornings and the chance to put on a cozy sweater.  As much as I can, I am trying to enjoy every moment and be thankful for the blessings that surround me.

As we pass through the seasons of the year and through the seasons of our lives, we remember – and cherish – the beautiful words of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8.

What is your favorite season?  What blessings are you finding in this beautiful fall?