Too Green for Fall

Today is the first day in Fort Worth that I’ve noticed how cold I feel- which is exciting because I always love the change in the seasons. However, it’s November 15th, 34 degrees (total winter weather) and the leaves on the elm trees in front of my house are still green as can be. How can this be? I love Texas, I really do, but fall is my favorite season, and I feel like I’m getting jipped. I almost feel though that in my earlier college years, the leaves had started changing by now- maybe have even fallen from the branch of a home they’ve known for the season. This year, I am all too afraid we are going to go from warm T-shirt weather to an instant Christmas. 

My mom sent me pictures from our front porch in Nashville- and the trees are almost as beautiful as ever. Over Halloween weekend, I saw photos and videos of kids running through the leaves on the sidewalks as they trick-or-treated. It made me think of my own trick-or-treating years. Cold weather, my mom making me wear a jacket over my costume (and the inevitable fight that ensued because “it ruined the look”), blowing and raking all the leaves in my yard into a giant pile, and my brother and I hiding in the pile- attempting to jump out and scare my dad when he got home. Now, I don’t even remember the last time I saw a giant pile of leaves, at least since I’ve been in Texas. I only hope that these memories aren’t exclusive to non-Texas children. or children of the past for that matter. 

There is so much to love about fall that we are at risk of losing if our lives go straight from summer to winter. I suppose we can do many of the same activities- sitting around a bonfire, bundling up in a sweatshirt and hat (but not a big coat yet) for a neighborhood walk, going to the pumpkin patch in your best flannel. However, while these are not necessarily activities exclusive to a certain temperature or month, I believe there is something so special about doing them in the beautiful season that is now at risk of only being known as a few days of “the in-between time”. 

With our twelve seasons, it almost seems as if 4-5 of them are dedicated to winter, 2-3 are spring, and another 4-5 of them are summer. And maybe I’m cynical, but I can’t let myself get excited about the next season before I fully appreciate the one I’m currently in (which causes a lot of controversy between my friends and me when they start listening to Christmas music in early November). I do realize, though, that my perception of the disappearance of fall is not entirely our fault. Even if some want to rush through it to get to Christmas, their feelings could be a direct result of not feeling in the “fall mood”, as we have recorded some of the hottest falls in history over the past few years. This, of course, is the culprit of the green leaves that frustrated me so. While it might be chilly today, the only thing the weather caused was my noticing the juxtaposition of the leaves and the temperature- not the normal routine of colder temperatures arriving in September, allowing the trees and their leaves time to change and fall as they are meant to do. Luckily, there’s still hope for fall yet, and I hope to find a pile of leaves within the next few days.

Edit: I wrote a few journal entries earlier in the month on my docs and forgot to upload here! Sorry!