The Autumnal Air Arrives

It is now over two months since the summer solstice, June 20th. Now all of a sudden we seem to have sped through the summer and are just about to screech into September. 

The scorching hot days, the late night swim in the English Channel, the fast melting ice cream cones and the sunburnt neck all seem to be a distant memory. Waking up this morning the heating (the thermostat turned right down) kicked in with the gentle whumph of the boiler ignition. I’m not sure if whumph is a word but it is exactly like the onomatopoeic word for my boiler. 

Just like the start of Mary Poppins the wind has changed, there is a chill about the place. Autumn is fast taking the place of Summer. As the children prepare to go back to school Christmas suddenly doesn’t feel that far away. 

There are many other signs of the seasonal change, apples fallen from the branches, conkers exploding from their casings under the horse chestnut trees, the worm-casts on the lawn in the softer ground and the first sight of geese flying in formation across the sky. 
Barbecued meals have been replaced by the Sunday roast with the resurgence of crumble and custard. Relaxing out in the late evening Sun has been replaced by sitting on the sofa in front of a roaring fire. Open-toed sandals on the dog walk replaced with timberland boots. T-shirts and shorts replaced with jeans and jumpers. 

Back in 2000 a-ha sang, “Summer moved on. And the way it goes you can’t tag along”. Well it appears that Morten Harket was right. Over the last few days Summer does indeed seemed to have checked out of the seasonal motel. 

It’s ok. I don’t want to tag along. I’m happy to embrace the change of season.  Bring on the breezy afternoon walks, the Sunday roasts and the new season TV shows. Bring on the fallen leaves and the smell of damp woods. Bring on the dew covered grass. Bring on the first frost. 

But before all that let’s just have one last day of warm weather. The last huzzah, a beautiful warm September day which reminds us of the season just gone and finally ushers in the run up to winter. 

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