I used to not pay attention to the "official" change of seasons. Honestly, in Texas, you really can't tell much of a difference in the seasons. The Fall season is pretty short in Texas. I have to admit I miss the four distinct seasons that you experience when growing up in Kansas. Fall meant leaves changing colors, then falling off the trees and lots of raking. It meant college football season and OU playing Nebraska for the Big Eight Championship during Thanksgiving Weekend. Temperatures got cooler and you could feel a chill in the air. Jacket season. The days grow shorter, the time change at first is a welcome change in the routine.
Texas does have a fall season. It comes suddenly. One day it's hot then a cold front rolls in and suddenly it's fall. Fall in Texas means The State Fair of Texas which starts this weekend. However, it's usually still pretty hot when we go to the Fair. OU-Texas is now the only real fall rivalry game for Sooner fans (sorry OSU fans). My favorite radio show Live From Here (once known as Prairie Home Companion) starts back up in the fall, although now I usually watch the live stream of the show on YouTube rather than merely listen to it on the old radio. But the show has become a harbinger of the Autumnal season for me.
We are lucky, in Texas, when we get a real change in the color of our leaves. It does happen some years. Then they usually all fall in one weekend when a brisk wind blows through. I now have my son to help me rake. Hoping my daughter joins in the raking fun this year. There's something satisfying being in the cool air, raking those leaves into nice big piles, seeing actual progress in your task.
As I've gotten older and lost more and more of my loved ones I've been more intentional in trying to be mindful of the little joys of life. The arrival of Autumn has become one of the little sources of joy. Ritual is important and the arrival of the Fall Season is a nice little ritual to celebrate.
