09.19.08
Autumn approaches
There was a tang in the air this morning, that first hint of autumn when the sugar maple in the back yard begins to lose its leaves. It’s always the first to signal the change of season. The house was cold this morning, I didn’t think to close the windows last night, and I woke this morning with the down comforter over top of me. I must have pulled it up sometime over night. The white oak has started to drop its acorns. I can hear them bounce off the ground and the picnic table, and some even roll across the front porch floor. The squirrels are busy eating their fill as well as burying the darn things in the flower pots and boxes around the porch. This winter, after I’ve brought the plants indoors, I’ll have a few oak trees sprouting among the basil and lemon verbena. The koi and gold fish are also ravenous, finishing their food in less than half the time as normal. All of these things all my signals that the change is coming.
I harvested the yellow peppers today, all two of them. One was perfect, the other half rotted on the side concealed by the iris it was growing against. I tried to cut away the bad part, but the rot permeated the entire thing. I also brought in two perfect tomatoes. There’s six more that are trying to ripen before the first nip of frost kisses them good morning. I hope they make it.
O.P.W.