Thoughts On A New Season (and a New Attitude)

Hey! It's the first post of September! I talk a lot about summer around here, and my deep, undying love for it. Simply put, to me, summer symbolizes a carefreeness that I just can't find the rest of the year. I do loathe the winter (the cold weather, short days, and lack of sunlight really get to me) - but I adore the holidays, and there are many things I greatly enjoy about fall and spring too. In the summer though, I feel the most alive. Everything about it represents the things I most love in life. The vast majority of my fondest memories (like the day this photo of our family was taken, back in July) take place in the summer. It's just a really, really special time for me. For that reason, it seems to pass by in a blink. And right around this time of year, when Labor Day is officially over and I realize that for the most part, summer is too, I start to feel blindsided.

I have a genuinely difficult time transitioning to fall. Apple orchards and pumpkins and autumn campfires and Halloween are wonderful and I do get excited for them, especially now that my little ones get so pumped. But I have always viewed fall as the beginning of the end, and the time of year when nature begins to die. I guess because I feel so connected to nature, I feel my spirit dying a little too. Holy balls it sounds dramatic and angst-y typing that out, but really guys, it's true. Once the trees lose all their leaves and the sun sets before 7 PM I can start to feel myself losing energy and enthusiasm. I used to struggle with some pretty serious seasonal depression, and while (thank the universe and knock on wood) I don't anymore, I absolutely feel less like myself once winter creeps in.

All of this said, I have made a vow to myself to do things a little differently this year. I'm going to create ways to keep a little bit of summertime with me well into fall (you may have read my post about that a couple of weeks ago), and I'm also going to focus on the things I love about the new season. Instead of mourning summer's departure, I'm going to appreciate the pieces of it that remain (warm days, flowers that continue to bloom into October and beyond, picnics and park days and walks around the neighborhood and outdoor meals with my family or my girlfriends), while also celebrating (rather than fighting) fall (see my comments about apple orchards, etc. above). We have the choice to like or dislike in general - and I'm going to choose to like September and October (and maybe even November) this year. I can't guarantee it will work, but hey, at least I'm trying. No matter what, a positive attitude really is everything, as cliche as saying that might be. And for this new season, I am choosing to have a new, positive attitude.

Thanks for letting me share my thoughts, friends. I know I don't do that as often around here these days, but it feels pretty great when I do.

Happy September, and almost fall!

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