Seasonal Shifts: Needles on the Ground


I was walking through the needles today and thinking about fall, a season that used to be one of my favorites. Recently, I have found fall less appealing, probably because I am not used to the southern changes in season. I miss certain trees, and I miss the snow. 

Watching the world turn gray but never seeing snow is distracting and strange. I never thought I would miss snow as much as I do, but fall affects me more positively if there is a snowfall that covers the brown leaves and points to change. Here in the south, I have to wait longer for this renewal as the world stays brown until spring arrives. 

I should get used to these different seasonal shifts. The seasons change, but they are not as evident to someone who grew up with four distinct seasons with vast temperature changes. In Wisconsin, you get used to shifts in the weather that are shocking and quick. Winter is long and snowy and feels so different from the southern fall, which is not as cold or different from the southern winter, which is practically the same to a midwesterner. The significant seasonal shift in Arkansas seems to be when the summer heat breaks, and the humidity lessens. 

The winter here is an extension of fall. More needles and leaves are covering the ground, and the hills are clearer of foliage. The wind is colder (it often gets colder than fifty degrees but never the below zero temperatures I am used to), and it rains more. If it snows, it will snow a couple of inches and soon be gone as the temperature rises. Otherwise, everything will shut down. People tell me this, but I have yet to experience the rush for milk and bread as people hunker down for the roads to clear. 

This year I am going to accustom myself to this different fall. I will take comfort in not wearing a heavy jacket and feeling the purifying winds. I will be satisfied and happy that I am not chilled to the bone. I will finally get used to people telling me to wear a jacket. Seasonal shifts require mental shifts, and I am prepared. 

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