The Winds of Autumn

Today is the first day of fall.  Although it doesn't feel like it here (according to my car, it was a sweltering steamy 98 degrees when I left work this afternoon), it's starting to look a little bit like autumn, and there's a tease of the changing season in the morning air.  In tribute to all the good things that come along with this my favorite time of the year, I thought I'd kick off the season with, of course, a list.  (Y'all know they're my favorite.)
101 Things to Love about Fall

"I cannot endure to waste anything as precious as autumn sunshine by staying in the house, so I spend almost all the daylight hours in the open air."--Nathaniel Hawthorne

1.  Cardigans
2.  Scarecrows
3.  Flannel sheets
4.  Reese's peanut butter pumpkins
5.  Apple cider
6.  Bales of hay
7.  Class reunions
8.  Trick-or-treating
9.  Pumpkins

10.  Cinnamon

11.  Chili

12.  Indian summer

13.  Pumpkin patches

14.  Your favorite old worn blanket

15.  Turtlenecks

16.  Caramel apples

17.  Carving pumpkins

18.  Beautiful sunsets

19.  Passing houses decorated with pumpkins and mums

20.  Suede

21.  Halloween
22.  Harvest moon

23.  Halloween parties

24.  Pretty fields ready to be harvested

25.  Cornfield mazes

"Autumn, the year's last, loveliest smile."--William Cullen Bryant

26.  College football

27.  Huddling under a blanket at football games

28.  Candy corn

29.  Tailgating

30.  Ghost stories

31.  Haunted houses

32.  Cool weather

33.  Halloween candy

34.  The warmth and comfort of home

35.  New fall TV

36.  Tailgate food

37.  Rosy cheeks

38.  Leaves changing

39.  Sweaters

40.  Rainy afternoons

41.  Smell of burning leaves

42.  Corduroy

43.  Raking leaves

44.  Bonfires
45.  Boots
46.  Fall weddings

47.  High school football

48.  Scarves

49.  Cozy socks

50.  Fall mums

"Change is a measure of time and, in the autumn, time seems speeded up.  What was is not and never again will be; what is, is change."--Edwin Way Teale

51.  Warm pajamas

52.  Wind blowing the leaves

53.  Jumping into a big pile of leaves

54.  Bourbon

55.  Neil Diamond's September Morn

56.  Building the first fire

57.  Driving with the windows down

58.  James Taylor's October Road

59.  Hot chocolate

60.  Sleeping with the windows up

61.  Rosemary Clooney's Shine on Harvest Moon

62.  Burning candles that just smell like fall

63.  Argyle

64.  The juxtaposition of life and death

65.  Cowboy boots

66.  Dark nail polish

67.  Hearty foods

68.  Hayrides

69.  Cool mornings turning to warm afternoons

70.  Decorating for Halloween

71.  New school supplies

72.  Apples

73.  Cold fingers and noses

74.  Fall colors:  orange, red, rellow, and brown

75.  Walking through crunching leaves

"Deep inside, we're still the boys of autumn, that magic time of the year that once swept us onto America's fields."--Archie Manning

76.  Nutmeg

77.  Shorter days

78.  Letter jackets

79.  Bobbing for apples

80.  Thanksgiving

81.  Pep rallies

82.  Mini pumpkins

83.  Gourds

84.  Scary movies

85.  Wool coats

86.  Indian corn

87.  Fall festivals

88.  New fall clothes

89.  Homecoming

90.  It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

91.  Remember the Titans

92.  Pumpkin pie

93.  Hocus Pocus

94.  Walks in the woods

95.  Tomato soup and grilled cheese

96.  Reading outside on a fall afternoon

97.  Holidays

98.  Long-sleeved t-shirts

99.  Harvest

100.  Apple pie

101.  Rogue cotton on the side of the road

"The acoustics of this season are different and all sounds, no matter how hushed, are as crisp as autumn air."--Eric Sloane

Happy first day of fall!!

Family Ties

"Love is stronger than death, even though it can't stop death from happening.  No matter how hard death tries it can't separate people from love.  It can't take away our memories, either.  In the end, life is stronger than death."--Author unknown
Tonight I am lifting up the Perkins family.  Since Spencer's tragic accident ten days ago, they have been forefront in my mind, and tonight is no different.  I am certainly not alone in sending up prayer after prayer for this family, for our entire community--and especially the Heritage Academy family--have been lifting them up together.
I can personally attest to the support, power, love, and strength of the Heritage family.  This group of people has been there for me and my own family time and time again.  After my dad's death; before, during, and after both of my mom's knee replacements and the complications that followed; and, at other times throughout my life--they've always been there.  Through my own highs and lows, successes and failures, they've been there every time.  Without their support and strength, I'm not sure I would have been able to withstand what was happening around me.
Once you're a member of the Heritage family, you're a member forever.  I started kindergarten at Heritage in the fall of 1990, and I've been a member of the Heritage family ever since.  Just because you graduate or move or leave for some reason doesn't mean you have to turn in your key; you're a part of this group forever.  I spent 13 years of my life walking those halls and formed lifelong friendships and connections there.  When I think of coming home to Columbus, the people I'm eager to see and catch up with are people that Heritage brought into my life.  Good or bad, for better or worse, I have a connection to the other members of my Heritage family, and it's a tie that cannot be severed.  Because we're small, we can't help but feel close-knit, and, when one of us is in trouble, we rally together in support.  Tonight the Perkins family needs our love and our support, our strength and our comfort, our thoughts and our prayers.
I know the coming days will be difficult for the Perkins, and I pray the intricacies of our daily life will not distract us from remembering how much they still need us.  Although Spencer was young, he made a huge impact on the people and the world around him, and there now exists an unfillable hole in the lives of many.  In unexpected tragedies such as this one, there is obviously no time to prepare for what is to come, which is, I think, both a blessing and a curse.  A blessing in that every moment of life up to the tragedy is lived fully; a curse in the sheer cruelty of unexpectedness.  Having endured this same type of unexpected tragedy myself, I can imagine some of the pain this family will face in the coming days, and I pray we will stay with them.  Love them, comfort them, and support them through our words, our touch, our presence, and, of course, our prayers.
To Mr. Tim, Mrs. Paula, Sparks, Sophie, and Sawyer:  know that we are with you.  We love and cherish you as if you are members of our own family, for that is really what you are.  You are treasured members of the Heritage Academy family, and we wouldn't be the same without you.  We'll hold you up until you regain your strength, and we'll keep Spencer's memory alive in our hearts.  Keep him alive in yours, too.  Talk about him, laugh about him, cry about him, remember him.  His time on Earth is through, but the impact he made can never be erased.  We love you; we're here for you; we're praying for you.
"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."--Psalm 34:18

Come September

I know I've been away forever, but things have just been too too busy.  Between work and class and work for class, life has been pretty full.  I have really started to enjoy my internship, but that's another post for another day.  Today is all about the fact that September is here, and I couldn't be happier about it.
Top 10 Things I'm Looking Forward to This September:
10.  Wedding parties and celebrations for several of my closest friends.
9.  This weekend's beach trip to Destin.
8.  The premier of Joaquin Phoenix's new documentary, I'm Still Here, detailing his decision to give up acting and pursue a career in rap.  Kidding... sort of.
7.  The autumnal equinox... fall's official arrival!
6.  New fall TV.  I couldn't be more ready for some new Glee in my life.
5.  International Chocolate Day, September 13.  It's a for real holiday; look it up.
4.  College football.  And by that I mean tailgating.  Oh, and seeing all my favorites, of course.
3.  Labor Day holiday... no school!
2.  Cooler weather.  Did someone say 'cardigan'?
1.  Seeing Jerry Seinfeld's comedy show in Memphis with Katie.  I can't even make sense enough to express how excited I am about this.... eeeeeeeeeeee, I can't wait!!