October is the best month, even the sun coordinates its rays to match the colors of the season. The entire month of October is comprised of those small “best things in life are free” moments. Unlike some months that just hang around, not doing much, like August or February, October moves through the air at bullet speed while at the same time asking us to slow down, savor the moment and pay attention. ‘Stop and look at me’, October screams; ‘slow down and listen to my voice whispering through the trees. Watch me while I change my colors from day to day. I’m here now, but I won’t be here for long’.
I can envision Robert Frost (easily my favorite poet), strolling through the Virginia woods: “The month is a treasurer, spending its wealth of golden and red hues, but its joy is temporary as the sun steals the morning's dewdrops. It's a time of both beauty and melancholy, a vibrant, yet fleeting, celebration before the quiet of winter arrives.”
He suggests that October is more than a pretty face. There’s a deep undercurrent to the month. October is the time to sit a spell, to enjoy that last moment of peace before the holiday season arrives in full force. Plans for the months ahead can be reviewed at leisure. It is a month of both anticipation and participation. Of course, the snows of winter are not far way. In anticipation, firewood must be racked by the door, leaves need to be raked, AC fluid must be replaced, oil will need to be changed and summer sunshine fruits will disappear while squashes and other fall vegetables make their presence known at the dinner table. It’s a noisy time too. Geese make a racket, idling in the cove’s waters while arguing with each other about which direction to take and when to do so. Overgrown summery plants scratch against the screen windows as reminders that it is time to be cut back and put to bed before the snows ahead. And the month ends with the final participation of October: children calling ‘trick or treat’.
November rightly makes the turkey population nervous. For those old enough to remember the most famous quote from the "WKRP in Cincinnati" turkey drop: "As God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly!" uttered by Arthur Carlson. Other memorable lines included Les Nessman's frantic report, "Oh, the humanity!" and then came Dr. Johnny Fever's dry conclusion, "For those of you who've just tuned in, the Pinedale Shopping Mall has just been bombed with live turkeys. Film at eleven”. Yes, November is a busy month and then comes December.
Christmas catalogues will fill mailboxes with overpriced ‘get them before they are all gone bargains’ for the holidays. December’s a month of red cheeked frenzy and chaos. Whatever the denomination or affiliation, there are holiday trees to set up, decorations to put up, familial reunions to coordinate, cookies to bake, midnight masses to attend, menorahs to light, gifts to ship and cards to mail.
Right now, though, we are in that sweet spot of October magic. That moment of warm weather, clear skies, richly colored trees and that still and smoky aroma in the air that only October can bring. Again (be patient with me), Robert Frost wrote:
O hushed October morning mild, thy leaves have ripened to the fall. Tomorrow’s wind, if it be wild, should waste them all. The crows above the forest call; tomorrow they may form and go. O hushed October morning mild, begin the hours of this day slow, Make the day seem to us less brief.
Release one leaf at break of day; at noon release another leaf; one from our trees, one far away; retard the sun with gentle mist; Enchant the land with amethyst. Slow, slow!
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