Autumn Wrap Up in New England

I’m taking the easier way out for this month’s blog post, as this writer has deadlines and tired/strained eyes from too much screen time and/or bingeing on a show with subtitles. So…I’m doing a visual wrap up of my fall so far! We are now past mid-October, meaning our peak fall foliage is winding down. But, wow, what a gorgeous fall we’ve had so far!

My Fall Favorites this year:

1. Raspberry bushes bursting with abundance — so happy! Looking forward to making jam this winter.

2. Fall Foliage near and far — my stomping ground of central Massachusetts.

3. A visit to Mystic, CT with my bestie.

4. Apples galore! My macoun apples, with some TLC (I am a helicopter gardener), provided!

5. A second weekend away in our new favorite place in Vermont: Mad River Valley of the Green Mountains

6. Our new kitty is feeling quite at home.

7. Kayaks and hikes.

8. Book fairs, signings, and other author events.

9. Writing a few more new books (stay tuned!).

10. New audio book releases this fall/winter.

11. Family Love.

12. Amazing sunsets.

Beautiful Transitions

A month goes by quickly and lo and behold, it’s time to write another post! As we sit on the precipice of summer tumbling into autumn, I find myself once again pondering the transitional time that is September. [Yes, I know it is still technically August] I naturally rely on my flower gardens to gift me with metaphors and symbolism. My two large hydrangea bushes are no exception. In fact, they are the perfect symbol of transition.

Spring to Autumn…my hydrangeas change color from white to pale pink to rusty blush. The blooms also grow on “dead wood,” meaning I don’t prune these gigantic bushes back in the autumn.

Some changes are cataclysmic: abrupt and furious.

Some are a metamorphic: striking changes after hardship.

Some are subtle and a slow trickle: calm, and not always readily visible to the passerby.

But all changes are certain. They happen. Abrupt, striking, after hurdles, and subtle.

Autumn tends to be my season of change. Yes, it’s still August. And the heatwave is wrapping up here in New England. I love September for its weather. Cool, calm, sunny, an extended summer. For the transitions, not so much. School, jobs, life…all tend to congregate in September. Lazy days of summer (though some summers are just as busy!) give way to hectic new schedules. Shorter days. Crisper nights.

Back to my flowers…(because I do obsess a wee).

Spring comes with anticipation, as shoots and buds of early bloomers erupt from the softening winter ground. Summer bursts with a daily rainbow of peak-bloomers, including my day lilies. With late summer and early autumn, the languid days draw to an end and the rusty golds and oranges emerge in the gardens, as the spring and summer flowers wilt, dry, and brown. Then, I sadly say goodbye to all my leafy friends in November as I prune most (but not all) of the perennials. Many need a good shearing for new growth come spring. Hydrangeas grow on dead wood. Lilies if left to decompose, self-fertilize (but admittedly, I do cut them back a bit, too).

My gardens are a subtle and slow change preparing for the sometimes cataclysmic autumn rush.

My September is:

• The end of my flower gardens (boo!) but the gift of knowing New England autumn foliage is coming

• The resuming of a regular writing schedule and more writing productivity, with less daily distractions for a work-at-home-mom

• New writing projects while waiting on others

• Kids back in school: homework, activities, the “grind”

• Cooler temperatures, shorter days

• Quieter moments, more time alone

• A return to visiting with writer’s group/colleagues

• Earlier rising

• New exercise routine

• And a few other professional/life changes that come with the territory

How is your end of summer and early fall transitioning? Have you been awaiting news (I feel like I am always awaiting news on something)? Are you jumping in head first to professional, academic, or personal changes? Are you blooming after a long stint of hardship? Are you closing one season and moving to a next?

Heedless, we’re told to embrace the changes. Sometimes easier said than done. But as my hydrangeas remind me, the changes can be beautiful.

And yes, I can load this post with a zillion flower garden photos, but if you follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, you’ve likely seen them all already!

Happy end of summer, everyone! What’s in store for your September?