The warm, fragrant day has found its close, and the evening develops in coolness. Gusty breezes sing along the corners of the house and make ghostly sounds within the chimney, causing occasional rattles of the hearth’s glass doors.
The change in the weather is palpable, and the listener knows that there will be a third more leaves on the ground in the morning and cooler days to follow.
Now is the enjoyable season of warm spiced teas and snuggly sweaters; of soft, comfortable pants and braided hair to keep the wind from whipping it around the face.
Through the glass of a darkened window, we watch as the moon slides between scudding clouds in a deep blue-black sky; its indifferent orb is pale, silver – serene in spite of the wind.
The trees whip and twist, conforming to the whims of the atmospheric current, and the warmth and comfort of shelter are cause for contentedness.
Quilted, thick throws are enjoyable, now, and so is the furry warmth of the cat in the lap as an emotional movie is indulged in.
Cravings for fruit cobblers, licorice teas, and baked apples develop, and the blankets on the bed become a comfort at bedtime once more, after a long summer of heat making them seem cloying and heavy. Now, they are an indulgence, as is everything soft, warm, and cozy.
Desire, like a soft, mellow fern, grows within the heart for everything comforting and gentle, as we listen to the wind push against the eaves; knowing that we’re safe, we give ourselves over to that blissful sense of peace that only autumn and stormy evenings occasion.
~ Amarine Ravenwood
Artwork by Thomas Kinkade
