September, Finally

I know a lot of people don't like the month of September, what with school starting and all, with summer ending.

But I love it.

I love waking up in the mornings and having it cool enough that I need to wear a jacket, but knowing that before the day is over, I can go outside in shorts and a t-shirt and be comfortable, not miserable fromthe heat.

I love that the cooler temperatures mean the lawn gets just that much greener with a little bit less water.

I love that the plants in our garden are huge enough they cast weed-inhibiting shadows over what tiny little bare spots of ground there are out there.

I love that it's too late for raspberries, too early for peaches and apples and way too early for carrots and onions. Not that I don't mind doing the bottling, but it's nice to have that September hiatus.

I love that the woodpile, scrawny in May, is heaped beyond all proportions and tarped for the coming winter.

I love that the mosquitoes aren't as aggressive.

I love that the farmers are buttoning up their grain and hay fields, rolling the hay into those ginormous bales that look like they'd be very fun to push down a steep hill, perhaps with someone riding inside, properly helmeted and padded, of course.

I'd love to see ten days added to September -- taken from February, that waste of a month -- just to make the serenity last that much longer.