Autumn: The Best Season of the Year

Autumn: The Best Season of the Year

Patricia Cummings

This photo shows a lovely autumn scene in Vermont of leaves blanketing the grass. Photo sent to us by Charlotte Croft

"The autumn leaves drift past my window; the autumn leaves of red and gold" are the words to a song that I sang in Glee Club in high school. Due to dry conditions, the leaves are showing a lot of early color and the rain and wind are sending them to the ground.

We love autumn and are looking forward to the quilt shows in New England. An exhibit not to miss is currently displayed at the Shelburne Museum in Vermont. The title is "Homefront and Battlefield: Quilts of the Civil War." Some of the best quilts from that period are on display. If you missed the book written by Lynne Z. Bassett and Madelyn Shaw on this topic, hurry to find a copy. It is the best volume written on the subject.

Autumn is the season to take frequent trips to the orchard to buy those crispy MacIntosh apples, right off the tree; apple cider, and baked goods including Apple Crumble Pie. It is the time when folks who heat with wood are taking the time to split wood. Others (like us) are working on the exterior of the house. Today's efforts by Jim were to do some minor repairs to the front porch and wash everything, preliminary to painting tomorrow.

The cooler air is wonderful! So are the passersby who stop to say they like the new "look" of our house. In yellow, I suppose it makes a statement. In fact, I know that it makes a statement! I was so happy to learn that yellow was its original color.

As for me, I have been hand quilting in my den. I am working on a queen size quilt that was pre-marked. It will take forever to finish but I cannot wait for it to be done. Meanwhile, I am listening to Bob Dylan, Mozart, Paul Rausch, and other favorites while I stitch.

Outside is another story. The chickadees, winter birds for us, have arrived. I heard but did not see a Pileated Woodpecker. Those dinosaurs make a hearty sound when they start drilling for insects in wood surfaces. The Jerusalem Artichoke plants are probably 8 feet tall by now and are blooming, finally, with their sunflower-like petals. All is right in my world.