November started off beautifully, almost as if it were September. Sunny, breezy, temps in the 70s...what a delight! The only clue that it wasn't September was that the trees were increasingly bare.
Today, November arrived. Sunrise was beautiful, a pink and blue sky. Piles of yellow- gold maple leaves covered the deck, glowing in the rosy light. And then in a moment, the colors faded as gray clouds moved in. By the time I got to work it was raining.
But that's the November that I know, and that I've come to love over the years. When I was young, the rain, the cold and the bare trees threw me into a sadness that sometimes bordered on depression. Usually it peaked around Thanksgiving (how ironic is that?) and then improved as we moved into the Christmas season.
I'm glad to say that years ago I started to feel differently about November. For one thing, being old enough to do some of the Thanksgiving cooking (or hosting!) has helped. Enjoying time with family, having our traditions (food and other), makes a big difference. Recognizing the beauty of the bare landscape helped too. Feeling the rhythms of seasons, knowing that the bare fields signify a harvest brought in, seeing turkeys, deer and pheasants...these are all pleasures I didn't know as a child, and I can revel in now as an adult.
And one of my winter-months guilty pleasures - getting in pajamas right after dinner! That's a treat I reserve just for these darker and chilly months. A cup of something warm, my robe and a book...what could be cozier! I embrace November, and it embraces me.
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