Brisk but foreboding time of year

This past weekend all of my senses reminded me that fall had finally arrived. It was a series of events and things that made me have feelings of ambivalence about this yearly change of seasons. On the one hand I relished the coming of the autumnal period, while at the same time experiencing some dread and apprehension.

Over the weekend we had our first significant frost. Again, this has some wonderful effects, and some that leave the landscape forlorn. The insects that have literally "bugged" us all summer long, retreat into dormancy. For close to six months, the only messes you will have to clean from your vehicle's windshield, will be the result of winter precipitation and muck.

After months of having to mow the yard almost weekly, the grass has receded into brownish clumps. You feel some satisfaction that the mower will rest from its labors for close to six months, but the color of the yard now elicits no pleasure for you. In a month or so you will so miss the green and pine for its return.

While the mower has been put to rest for the coming winter, you are far from paroled from the duties in your yard. Along with the frost over the weekend, the fall winds began to blow fiercely. When I gazed out the front window the yard changed every few minutes.

For a time, the newly fallen multi-colored leaves fell in deep cover over the entire patch of grass beneath the tress. Then the winds suddenly gusted, forcing the mounded piles to rise in a swirling cauldron, and disappear into the yard of a neighbor. Shamefully I did take some solace in their leaving for another's yard, but then I realized this was only a temporary reprieve. In a few minutes the gathering airborne mass would return as if it were coming home.

You are also reminded of the seasonal changes when you check the calendar. Last Friday was Halloween, and Sunday we were all reminded that it was the end of Daylight Savings Time.

Both of these occurrences are by and large popular with most people. Halloween is a festive holiday for both kids and adults. Most of us don't care much for the changing of the times on our clock, but if there is a preference, it is for the change that comes on the first Sunday in November each year. While the majority of us are a bit uncomfortable with the time changes each fall and spring, at least this one includes a "fall back" on our clocks, and that gives us an extra hour of sleep.

Am I the only one who is puzzled by the weird fact that my sleep patterns didn't seem to change with the time? I usually awake before my alarm. This morning, when I had an extra hour of sleep, I was awakened by the alarm, and knew immediately that I could easily have slept much longer.

Just one more thought on the time change. Since I got my first iPhone a few years ago, I have quit wearing watches. I have several nice ones in a drawer. I wore a watch from the time I was a kid until recently. These smart phones and the satellite television automatically change the time for me, so I have only a couple of clocks to reset. My lonely watches remain in the drawer, and I know not to which time period they were last synchronized.

Last weekend I attended the Chiefs football game. The weather change affected both fans and players. At our tailgate we had a difficultt time keeping our tent from blowing away in the brisk bursts of wind, and were forced to hustle and tied down everything in sight.

On the field, the football fluttered helplessly at times in erratic flight. In the parking lot and the stands the clothing attire displayed a dramatic alteration from the mild temperatures of only one week earlier. Hooded sweatshirts now replaced polos, and almost every fan was wearing some type of gloves.

As I was sitting there, I was never able to get completely warm. I thought to myself, "in a few weeks, it will be too cold to really enjoy a Chiefs game at the stadium, because it will be much colder, and the weather might include some ice and snow. Fall is great football weather, but late fall climate changes can make it tough for fans.

I did take comfort in the thought that soon basketball would return. We are now less than a month from the annual Carthage Basketball Tournament. It might be cold outside, but inside the gyms of southwest Missouri, teams are gearing up for the end of fall and the beginning of a long winter of basketball.

Fall offers more than just seasonal changes in the weather. It also precedes our entrance into the "Holiday Season." We are just about three weeks away from Thanksgiving, and you know that will most definitely encourage and remind many of the upcoming Christmas "mania."

Fall will end just a handful of days before Christmas. During this very active time, we will experience the good and the bad of the holiday festive season.

Travel, parties, family gatherings, gifts, and all those multitude of things that are part of the holiday season, make it a special time of the year.

Although fall officially ends with the first day of winter on Dec. 21, I always view the true end of the autumn season to be New Year's Eve. From that point forward, we have at least three months of dreary winter.

Yes, last weekend brought fall into full bloom for me. It is a brisk time when life begins its inevitable journey into winter. I love this time, but hate what it portends. Old man winter is just around the corner!