That Fall Feeling
September is my favorite month of the year. As the temperatures start to drop (even by just a few degrees) and the days become shorter, it gives me a feeling of welcome change and renewal. Some people think I’m crazy, mourning the end of summer as they slog back into old routines. But for me it’s a chance to hit the reset button.
It’s different from the renewal that spring brings, with shades of bright green popping up to remind me of what’s to come after weathering the winter. It’s one of seeing the leaves just starting to turn a warmer shade as I relish the last tomatoes and fruits of summer, wearing sandals while I still can, and the anticipation of cooking all things pumpkin. It’s remembering the feeling of going back to school as a kid, eager to see my friends (and make new ones) and learn something new.
Every new school year made me both sad to lose the freedom of summer and excited for what a new grade would introduce me to. There was always a tingle in my stomach when it came to finding out my new teacher, thinking about what sports I wanted to play, and the excitement of trips to the mall for a collection of new school supplies (Trapper Keepers!) and the fall wardrobe refresh.
Looking back, it really was a time of reinvention each year. An opportunity to open up a fresh notebook to write a new chapter; to try on both a new wardrobe and a new me. Who did I want to be in the new school year? And what was I ready to step away from? I remember deliberately eschewing the color pink when I was starting high school – obsessing over darker colors and spiked hair, wanting to move away from the brand of being a junior high kid and step into the teenage me.
These memories bring a smile to my face (and maybe a bit of a blush when I think back to some of my fashion choices . . .) and remind me to embrace that fall feeling. The vibe of what’s emerging instead of what I’m losing with summer wrapping up. September makes me crave taking on something new and sloughing something off, like an old skin I’m ready to leave behind.
In this first week of September, I’m experimenting with new practices – such as a morning writing ritual. I’m pondering what I want to let go of – maybe changing some of the work I’m doing that isn’t lighting me up right now. And before I grab a sweater out of my closet in the coming weeks, harking back to that question of who I want to be this fall.
