Seasonally Speaking

Summer ended abruptly for us in BC.

The set-up day for our son’s wedding, August 20th, peaked at 38 degrees Celsius – or 100.4 for those who think in Fahrenheit. Two short weeks later, 14 C is the warmest we felt. The mercury has stayed on the lower end of the thermometer.

Leaves are turning, falling and crunching under our tires as we bike rural paths. Mornings are crisp and daylights hours receding. Fall is upon us, even if the calendar promises a couple more weeks of summer.

In previous years, I remember putting on a pair of jeans and relishing the feeling of finally being cool enough to do so. A marker of change. Kids going back to school also indicated passage of time. But this year, I didn’t tire of wearing shorts and we have no offspring heading into educational pursuits for the first time in 21 years.

Even the signs of change change.

God never intended life to be stagnant. He wants me to learn and grow, and I love how the seasons model this for me. Summer is buoyant with gardens yielding veggies and flowers bursting with colorful blooms.

But summer couldn’t happen without the dormant, resting period winter provides.

And spring, full of life and hope needs the compost of fall to protect and fertilize, preparing the soil for another season of new growth.

So here I am in fall, attempting to establish routines in a stage of life unlike any other. Since this time last year there is hardly a category untouched by significant shifts – family, health, work.  Even positives require adjustment. Thankfully, we still live at the same address.

And the One who oversees and orchestrates the leaves turning red remains unchanged. Thankfully.

With love and gratitude,
Shelaine