The Blessing of Autumn

To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1

I love fall! It never fails to bring about a "nesting" instinct within me. After enjoying the sultry days of summer and time spent outdoors, autumn brings the refreshing arrival of cooler temperatures. The rapidly falling leaves foretell the near arrival of the next season to come, and remind me to savor the beauty of fall, because it will only be here for a brief time.

Since I was a young child, autumn was always a special time, and I can still vividly recall the scents of the old farmhouse kitchen where I grew up.  It instilled in me a desire to cook and bake at the first sign of changing leaves.  This year I've been blessed by a bounty of apples and pumpkins from the abundant gardens of friends and family. There is applesauce to be made and pumpkins to be pureed and frozen. It's the season of fat juicy apple dumplings, cinnamon laden apple pies, moist pumpkin bread, and spicy sweet pumpkin pies. It's the time of the year when pots of homemade soups show up on the menu more often along with freshly baked loaves of bread or rolls. I had to fire up the old black wood stove a few days ago, and although that is my least favorite thing about fall, I am thankful for a warm home to live in as the crisp fall wind splatters rain against my windows.

It's also the time of the year when I start to think about pulling out my latest quilting project that was sorely neglected over the busy summer months. Darkness settles in a little earlier each day, and longer evenings allow more time for sewing projects.  Fall brings with it a longing to curl up in a cozy blanket with a good book and a steaming mug of hot chocolate or tea.

I've been thinking about how blessed I am to live in an area where we experience a noticeable change of seasons. They each have a unique beauty of their own, and I'm so thankful for the change each one brings with it. Here in the mountains, autumn is indeed a beautiful season, a season filled with the rich abundance of God's blessings!