Dear Kid,

It is fall.

I define fall as “I wish I had worn socks to the soccer game.” Dad defines fall as “Get those icicles you call feet off me.”

Some people define fall as “the time when cider comes” or the time of the pumpkin harvest. It is also the time of leaf changing and football and marching bands.

Fall is the time when we can’t find the right jacket because whatever we find will be insufficient for the frost of early morning and far too much for the warmth of the afternoon. Also because we can’t remember where we put the darn thing last spring.

Fall is the time when grocery store shelves explode with Halloween candy and little kids explode with ideas about Halloween costumes. It is the time when some of us begin collecting Really Interesting Recipes for Thanksgiving (most of which will never get made).

Fall is the time when our cheeks get red and we drink hot chocolate and coffee and thaw reasonably quickly. In winter, the thaw will take longer and be much less pleasant.

I need to remember to wear socks to the soccer game on Thursday.

Happy Fall.

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

Fall is one of my favorite times of year (the others being Any Nice Day ever). It seems to me fall has a wonderfully disproportionate number of nice days.

Booker and I went out early for his morning walk today. I was determined to avoid another episode of Curious Puppy and the New Blacktop so we went before Roxie was out.

It was still dark, the occasional streetlamp giving me a shadow about 100 times taller than I’ll ever be. It was dark enough to see the stars, and the Big Dipper, Orion, and Cassiopeia accompanied us on our way. The weather was just right for shorts and Samara’s old lacrosse jacket. In other words, perfection all around.

Only one or two cars passed us as we sniffed along, pausing to inspect each and every blade of grass. I like the feeling of being (more or less) alone in the world early in the day. No computer, no phone (I just realized I never take a phone on my morning Booker walks–huh), no one else. Don’t get me wrong–I love my laptop and my cell and other people, but sometimes it’s nice just to have a few quiet minutes.

You might assume I would use the time alone to think and sometimes I do. But today I just let my mind go. I wasn’t thinking about anything in particular, I wasn’t trying not to think. (OK, I thought a little about keeping Booker away from the blacktop.) I was enjoying the morning, taking a minute to appreciate the early quietness. There is something very refreshing about taking a few minutes every now and then just to let my mind relax.

By the end of the walk, the sky was lightening and it was the start of a new day.

Hope you have a great day with time for a few mind relaxing moments. Taking time to think of nothing is important too.

Love, Mom