By John ‘Butch’ Dale
Guest Columnist

I would imagine that everyone has their favorite season of the year. Most people love the summer months because of all of the activities … cookouts, camping, boating, swimming, baseball games, etc … sunshine and long days, picnics, homemade ice cream, fireworks, sitting on the front porch, watching the sunset, the starry skies at night.

John ‘Butch’ Dale

There are those who prefer spring, when life is returning and the flowers and the trees are blooming. They feel refreshed after the long winter, and can’t wait to get the lawn mower up and running, plant the garden, open the windows and air out the house, or take their dog on a walk on a cool spring day.

And yes, there are many people who prefer winter when the skies are blue and the air is crisp.

December is the favorite winter month because of the Christmas holidays. People go shopping, get together with families, friends and church members, and here in Indiana … attend high school and college basketball games. Kids make snowmen, ice skate, and go sledding. Some just enjoy sitting in their recliner, reading a good book, watching it snow … feeling safe, warm, and secure as the cold wind blows outside.

There are certain aspects of spring, summer, and winter that I enjoy, but my choice, hands down, is the fall season. When September arrives, and the days become shorter, the hot humid days of summer end, and the leaves change into a myriad of beautiful colors … orange, red, gold … that’s the time of year I savor.

As poet Edgar Guest stated, “All the work of earth is finished, or the final tasks are near, but there is no doleful wailing. Every living thing that grows, for the end that is approaching, wears the finest garb it knows.” The farmers are harvesting their crops, and the wild creatures are preparing for winter.

In October, a hazy fog covers the fields in the early morning, the cool wind scatters the falling leaves across the yard. “Every tiny little blossom wants to look its very best, when the frost shall bite its petals and it droops away to rest.”

Yes, September and October are special months, and then comes November when the trees are barren, the wind has a bitter feel, the sky is cloudy, and Old Man Winter reminds us that he is just around the corner as snow flurries occasionally come our way. But then we enjoy the Thanksgiving holidays, when the family gets together … the women preparing loads of turkey, oyster dressing, green bean casserole, chicken and noodles, cranberry salad, hot homemade rolls, and of course pumpkin pie in the cozy kitchen, while the men gather in the living room to tell stories and watch football … a true American tradition.

For some, the gray skies of November are depressing. They view November as one would a long life …t he beginning of the end. But not me … I cherish those cloudy days! It is a time to reflect on the past year …t he triumphs, the struggles. When I go on my early morning walk and see the birds, the deer, the squirrels, the rabbits and the coyotes, I know that life is a challenge for all creatures, including the human race, but all will persevere.

The fall season in Indiana, especially November, renews my belief that life goes on. “Now the supper’s scarcely over ere the darkness settles down, and the moon looms big and yellow at the edges of the town … Oh, it’s good to see the children, when their little prayers are said … duck beneath the patchwork covers when they tumble into bed … a calmness and a sweetness seem to fall, over everything that’s living, just as though it hears the call … of old winter, trudging slowly, with his pack of ice and snow.”

The autumn months. They are in tune with and reflect my personality. And as Edgar Guest continued, “And I pray that I may proudly hold my head up high and smile … when I come to my September in the golden afterwhile.”