Sunday Afternoon Tea - The Beautiful Week

We are finally entering one of my favorite weeks of the year, that is when the trees are full of colorful leaves and one feels they could walk down the gravel lane and see fairies in the forest.  The wind is strong and the air is crisp, a welcome relief from the heat of a very long summer.

It is a magical time (Narnia magic), a short lived few days when I feel as if Heaven kisses the Earth with the promise of things to come. The color is quite muted again this year but that is okay.  It brings a sense of living in an Impressionist painting and completes an illusion of autumnal mysteries.

This morning I walked to the yellow mailbox where the Sunday paper appears in the early morning hours, which these days are before the sun rises above the horizon. There was a misting of raindrops and I was quite happy that the turkey stock I made from the remains of dinner a few nights ago would soon be simmering on the back burner.  Half a bag of thin Amish noodles will be added to the pot, along with leftover turkey.  It's warmth will feel good on such a cold and damp day.

We are entering the time of year where the kitchen is once again a place of happy contentment with root vegetables to be chopped and meals planned so there is something to make soup from at least once a week.  The heat of the oven is now welcome, which manifests itself in the roasting of the vegetables, whether or not there is a protein to bake at the same time, and the occasional baking of a cake.

I actually enjoy watching the daylight hours grow shorter, as lamps are turned on and rooms take on a glow not found in summer's glare.  It is the season for bibliophiles to tackle the stack of books which have been waiting while the outside world beckoned.  It is the season to take the tea cozy out of the drawer... for the single teabag is a product of hot weather.  The cold... and especially the cold and damp... requires multiple cups of tea, or coffee, or hot cider.

The background music has been autumnal instrumentals which usually include a dulcimer and perhaps a guitar, or the newly downloaded Celtic album of The North Coast Sessions by Keith and Kristyn Getty.  How beautiful is their music based on the Psalms.

There will be touches of green all year as I have been slowly adding more houseplants to the rooms this past year to utilize their air cleaning talents.  The unexpected consequences of this attempt has been a restful beauty that I had long forgotten.  No longer will I take for granted the human need for living with nature... inside as well as out of doors.

Scented candles as well as those with no scent at all have come out of their resting places now that the darker hours have become longer.  The hot weather clothing is in the back of the closet, pullover sweaters and long sleeved shirts have taken their place.  My favorite sandals have been moved to the floor of the closet instead of their former place on the boot mat next to the door.

Where I live, this special season of mystical mystery lasts a very short time.  I think that is part of the reason it is so special.  I once read a story of a woman who had a near death experience and had been shown a part of Heaven where it is always Autumn.  I would love that to be true but until that time, I need to embrace the few cool and colorful days we are given.

Before we know it, Thanksgiving will be here and then there will be Christmas and the sparkle of that season.  I suppose this is one of those times that Carpe Diem is the necessary thing to do. I plan to celebrate with a bowl of soup and a cup of hot apple cider as the wind and rain persist against the window.  It all comes together to make for a few special cozy days.

Mentioned in this Blog Post
Peaceful Easy Feeling CD... here.
The North Coast Sessions (digital)... here.

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Image:  Warming Up in Badgers Kitchen by Chris Dunn