Saying goodbye to summer

By Jamie Rieger
It’s official. Summer is over. For many, the end of summer arrives when classes start back up and the young people head back to school, but it is this week that we officially wave good-bye to another summer and welcome all the splendors that autumn brings.
Replacing the warm, sunny days are cooler temperatures and more colourful foliage as the trees and shrubs prepare to drop their leaves.
Most of the outdoor festivals, rodeos, and camping trips have finished up for the year and being replaced with activities that are held inside.
Our flip-flops are being replaced with shoes and socks and we have likely already wore our favourite cardigan or sweater when heading out in the morning. There’s probably even been a few days already when we turned off the A/C and turned on the furnace. (I know I for one was fighting against turning on the furnace, but caved one morning when even a sweater wasn’t enough to warm me up.)
I like both summer and autumn for different reasons. Summer is a great time for families to get together for annual barbecues and backyard fun.
Autumn, with the cooler temperatures, is a good time to get some great photos of the leaves turning colour and who doesn’t like the sound of leaves crunching under the feet? Of course, with the falling leaves comes the fall yard clean-up; so the sprinklers and hoses get packed up and replaced the rake. Yard work is much more enjoyable when the weather is a little cooler.
This year, I have a tree in my backyard that hasn’t shown a hint of dropping its leaves yet, and is still as green as it was in the middle of summer. I have a feeling it will be November before I am finished raking if our weather stays as nice as it has been.
I’m always a little sad when summer comes to an end, but at the same time, am always hopeful for a nice, long autumn when a few outdoor activities can still be enjoyed. I’m never quite ready to close everything up for a few months and watch the world from the inside looking out.
As autumn arrives this week, here’s hoping for a few more weeks of nice, warm weather and being able to spend some of it in the great outdoors.

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