“All the months are crude experiments,” Virginia Woolf said and maybe she was onto something.
Think about it… the calendar starts us in the dead of winter, cold and dark, like life before the spark. Then comes spring, full of bloom and rebirth, teasing us with hope and second chances. Summer follows, wide open and loud, stretching out long days where freedom and warmth make us believe the season might last forever. Maybe all of those months, all of those seasons, are just the opening act.
Maybe their only purpose is to prepare us for this moment, the first of the “Ber” months, September.
September brings clarity. It doesn’t rush in, it just arrives with its cooler mornings, sharper skies, and a reminder that change is the one thing we can always count on. It gives us a proper farewell handshake with the longness of summer days, then slowly walks us toward autumn’s front porch. There is comfort in that transition… in knowing that it is okay to pause, breathe, and watch the leaves ignite in color before drifting to the ground.
I think back to the few falls I spent in Indiana, the smell of burning leaves floating down the block, the soft crackle of smoke hanging in the air. The sound of rakes dragging across lawns. Sweatshirts pulled out of the bottom drawer or better yet, that new sweatshirt with the name of your favorite college. The smell of burning leaves only lives in my autumnal memory. Nobody lives at 6130 Indianola that I know or love.
Maybe life, just like Virginia’s September, is a crude experiment, as well. There are no blueprints, no instructions, no guarantees. We stumble, we adjust and we learn as we go.
So, you magnificent Chalkheads, grab your favorite sweater, sip your first pumpkin latte and let the sun put a smile on YOUR face today. Go find the first astonishing treasure this new month has waiting for you.
