Fall is here and I have mixed feeling about it. On the one hand, I love how the leaves change on the trees and how this transforms the hills from solid green to shimmering shades of orange, yellow and red. I love how the days can still be comfy warm but the nights are chilly. The acorns are falling like crazy and Mother Fran keeps swinging her cane at them to push them off of the deck. Fall is a great time of year to go apple picking, pumpkin carving and hiking in the woods.
Fall is also when Mother Fran and Child #7 pack up and leave the lake to return to Florida for 8 months. I don’t like closing up the cottage and how the decks slowly look more and more empty. My little condo goes from being my bedroom to being a home for the furniture, kayaks and umbrellas. I don’t like as the days and nights grow colder and the trees become bare.
This time of year, I try to spend as much time as possible with Mom and my sister both at the lake and in the surrounding area. As I type this, I am in the living room of the cottage. The television is blaring (as usual) even though no one seems to be watching it. Mom is intently working on her puzzle and Child #7 is playing games on her Kindle. Fenway has been trying to get comfortable on her bed for several minutes by walking all over and scratching it. Now she is sleeping soundly on the floor next to her bed. This really is my happy place and I am already dreading when I can’t get here during the winter months.
Tomorrow my sister and I have plans to complete an “Aerial Ropes Course”. If you have never done one of these, I highly recommend it. It is a mix of balance beams, wooden bridges, cargo nets etc. that swing between trees 25 feet above the ground. You wear a harness and complete challenge after challenge while building your confidence in your strength and abilities. It is actually a pretty good workout and a lot of fun. Mother Fran will spend the afternoon watching football. She will barely know we are gone!
Last year, Child #3, my honey and I completed an indoor course in Virginia and the year before we did one in Florida with Child #7. Next week, I hope to take Mother Fran to visit a local orchard to get some yummy apples, cider and maybe have a hard cider tasting. I like checking out the pumpkins, gourds and fall decorations. The clock is ticking and I want to do as much as possible with them before they leave.
I spend the cold days and long nights of winter wishing it was spring. I spend the nice days of spring wishing it was summer. I spend summer wishing time would slow the heck down. I want the long days to be longer and the starry nights to never end. Fall is here and there is nothing I can do about it. Winter is coming and there is nothing I can do about it.
The clock is ticking; tick tock, tick tock. The clock is ticking and there is nothing I can do about it. Instead of wishing time would pass more quickly or praying for it to slow down, I guess I will find a way to enjoy every minute. I am looking at Fenway sleeping, Mom working on her puzzle and Child #7 playing her game. I am blessed to have this minute, this day, this season.
Tick, tock! Stop wishing your life away and start enjoying this very minute!
Lake Girl
I did an aerial ropes course with J and C this summer. It was amazing. We went into it assuming that J and I would hate it and spend the whole time in terror. C was gung-ho, and I figured he’d finish first and be bored waiting for us. What actually happened was a revelation. J took off first and crushed it. C was a lot more nervous than he anticipated and had to slow down and be more cautious. I was nervous and scared, but I did it (though I was DONE after 2 hours). We all felt triumphant after.
This was the hardest one I have done. Fun but exhausting! Glad the boys enjoyed it! Surprised that you liked it!!! Good for you!
Beautifully stated. My brother-in-law is battling cancer. He will be admitted tomorrow afternoon to start the process leading up to a stem cell transplant. In the past year and a half, we have all learned a valuable lesson. . .do not wish the days away. The days of saying, “I wish it was Friday” or “I can’t wait until vacation” have been replaced with, “I hope today goes by slowly”. ~ Savor each day. Cherish each moment. Treasure every memory.
He is in my thoughts! Thank you for reading.