Thursday, November 12, 2015

Fall strikes back

Our Indian summer is fading into memory. Fall is tightening its grip. Temperatures are tumbling, and once golden leaves lie like brown shadows on the ground under their trees. Vineyard workers are busy replacing stakes and old vines. They are renewing certain parcels with tiny vines planted in sleeves to protect against the coming winter, filling in gaps where older, diseased vines have been pulled up. The rhythm of vineyard work beats on year 'round.

A small apple tree braces itself for winter next to an old vineyard storage shed.

I enjoy watching the changes each year, and even as I know that winter's cold and darkness are fast approaching, I also know that lighter and warmer days will follow after that. I've lived where the changes are more pronounced, where winters feel arctic and summers suffocating. I've lived where the temperature stays nearly the same all year. I prefer this to either of those. It's rarely too hot, rarely too cold. Whatever time of the year it is, whatever the changing weather brings, it usually feels the way it ought to.

6 comments:

  1. Enjoyed reading this today. Time is passing in familiar ways.

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  2. Beautifully put.

    Living in the midwest, I'm far too familiar with the arctic winters and suffocating summer.

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  3. My blood has thinned, I think after years of living in Southern California and the desert. So I prefer this two-season (dry/rainy) climate. But the sky is so much more dramatic in fall and winter (even here). I love that vineyard storage shed. It's so much more picturesque than the pre-fab stuff around now.

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  4. And life continues. You and Ken have chosen a wonderful place to watch the seasons change.

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  5. evelyn, it keeps us grounded.

    jacqueline, I feel your pain!

    michael, thank you.

    mitch, I know what you mean. I don't think I could take the upstate NY winters (or even the downstate ones) any more.

    christine, we like it! :)

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