I know it's only August 4, but when I stepped into the back yard this morning, there was the unmistakable crisp breeze of autumn in the air. And I've spent the rest of the day thinking about fall.
I'm not sure what it is about autumn that always makes me nostalgic. Every other season can pass without much notice from me, but for some reason autumn makes me stop and think about all the autumns of my past, and wonder about the coming autumns of my future.
Maybe it's because when you're a kid, autumn marks the beginning of the next school year. New pencils, new binders, new teachers, new clothes. Will grade 5 be way harder than grade 4 was? Will the teacher be nice? Figure skating starts soon! How many new jumps will I learn this year?
When you're a kid, everything starts over again in the autumn in a way that January 1 just doesn't address.
And maybe that's even more true for a farm kid, because autumn means harvest. The end of the growing season and a mad dash to get the crops off before frost and snow makes its first appearance.
For a farm kid, it means taking meals to the field for the men busy at work, and evenings spent getting all the uneaten produce out of the garden. It means making jars and jars of pickles, and stewed rhubarb, and zucchini bread, because you know that soon crisp white snow will blanket everything, getting the earth ready to start again for another year.
I always get reflective and nostalgic in the autumn, but this year it seems to be worse. I'm sure early this year! Maybe it's all those pregnancy hormones floating around, making me remember my childhood, and wonder about the kind of childhood MY child will have. I'm a little sad that my child won't be a farm kid, and won't have all the same memories that I do. But I'm sure my child will have happy autumn memories of his or her own.
Those of you who grew up "in town" (like my sisters and I used to call it) - what were your memories?
1 comment:
Well said! I wasn't a town kid, but I'm going to comment anyway hahaha
Fall is my favourite time of year... cool mornings but hot afternoons. I remember wearing shorts while waiting for the school bus and freezing my sandaled feet in the wet grass.
I remember the 'big' back to school shopping trip... my mom, myself, my brother and 2 sisters and Woolco. My mom was usally insane by the end of the day. Plus dealing with Calgary traffic always drover her to the edge.
But don't worry. Your child WILL be a farm kid, I assure you. Right from their very first tractor or combine ride with grandpa! Eating supper in the field with grandad, auntie Lisa and uncle Tom is always a highlight for my boys.
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