French Christmas

Boo!

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Half and Half

The past few days have been the perfect mix of Summer and Fall. Wildflowers, crickets and cicadas defiantly show their faces, even as the Halloween decorations twinkle at night and the trees show off their colors on golden afternoons.

We all dig in our heels and brace ourselves when it’s time for change: a change of seasons, a change of location, a change of view. But what are we worried about, when change can be as gentle and lovely as this?

 

Daily Forecast

I spent a lot of last week laughing at myself, realizing how ridiculous I am in my efforts to control the world, when I can’t even control the way I feel minute to minute. My emotions are as wild and unpredictable and as out-of-my-hands as Midwestern weather patterns. I realized this as I sat on my yoga mat, taking a quick mental inventory of the feelings and reactions that had stormed through my consciousness in the past 24 hours.

I woke up that morning expecting excitement and motivation, only to see a thin drizzle of fatigue and irritability. I donned my raincoat and galoshes, preparing for the worst, when the storms turned to sunshowers of hilarity and acceptance. I had to hang on to my umbrella, though; the break in the clouds was only brief. A hailstorm of doubt rolled in, interrupted by sporadic flashes of discontent and a slow, creeping cover of melancholy. By evening the fog had burned off, with the harsh fall weather giving way to Indian summer and the soft sunset feeling of having survived the day.

I’ve started imagining my emotions as one of those time-elapsed weather videos that show the thunderheads rolling in as quickly as they roll out. I’m trying to welcome whatever is coming, because bright or dark, it’s just making way for something else.

 I’m especially welcoming the forecast for this week, as according to my daily planner:

Out Of Office

It's Fall. There are lots of weddings. And birthdays. And leaves to watch as they change color.

There are pumpkins to be picked. There is cider to be stirred. There are plans to be made.

I knew something was going to get put on the back burner with so much else simmering and bubbling up. I was hoping it wasn't going to be this blog, but apparently, that's the way the Halloween cookie crumbles.

Be back soon.

XOXO N. :)