Autumn

It is one of those amazing autumn days in Colorado. It is brisk but sunny, cool breeze dancing around and the undeniable feeling that change is eminent. When we first moved to Denver fall was such a pleasant and welcomed surprise. As a born and raised Midwesterner, I was accustomed to a brief autumn that boasted spectacular color but gave way to a brutal winter. For most of my life fall meant impending doom, months and months of subzero temperatures, with snow that would fall soft and white but would turn to icy, black patches capturing all the urban pollutants. My body would tense as the leaves changed color, and I would shed tears as I packed away the summer flip flops and tshirts.

Over the years fall has become my very favorite time of year in Colorado. The temperature is perfect and I no longer have to anticipate a miserable winter. I have in fact come to welcome the change in seasons. Winter in the Mile High provides gentle, and some times fierce snowfalls, that melt quickly and usually provide very little inconvenience. One day your making a snowman, and drinking hot cocoa, the next taking a stroll in your jean jacket and enjoying ice tea.

So many people tell me how great the California weather is, but to be honest I think I am going to miss the climate here. Somehow it is hard to imagine a Christmas where there is zero percent chance it will be white.

So I am sitting here on my front porch as I write this, enjoying the sunshine and and the beauty of an October afternoon in Colorado. The moving van is directly in front of me. Our movers are toiling away inside packing up our belongs, tearing everything down. It's impossible not to get teary eyed and sentimental. Today I am here, in my most favorite spot on earth, and in two days I will be heading off to a new life and a change much greater than the passing of a season.