Fall is Coming, Ready or Not

Officially there are three more weeks of summer, but September first always feels like the end of summer and the beginning of Fall. The storm that greeted the Wasatch front a couple of days ago looked and felt like we were jumping straight from summer into winter and bypassing Fall. We had so much hail our lawn and driveway looked like we'd gotten our first snowfall. The hail didn't all melt from the neighbors' roofs until well past noon.

There's something about the changing of seasons that seems to herald new beginnings. A new school year begins of course, but other changes occur too, as we shift from summer casualness to a more productive time. Summer heat encourages relaxed days while Fall's cooler days suggest it's time to get back to business, to take inventory of how we spend our time, to clean our houses, and set or complete goals.

In the writers' world, we tend to suddenly realize how close we are to general conference and to the holiday season and vow to finish our WIPs before we become swamped with pre-holiday book signings and events. We remember there are only a few months left to nominate our favorite books for Whitney awards.

Fall also brings frenzied political posturing before the November elections. There's a lot at stake, so let's get involved early and make certain we're prepared to be informed voters who actually vote.

It won't be long now until we see the turning of colors on the trees and shrubs (the few leaves left after the hail chewed most of them to shreds), gardens will produce their last ears of corn, the zuchinni will be gone, and we'll be marvelling at the beauty of the last roses of the year. It's hard to say farewell to fresh peaches, fat watermelon, sun-ripened tomatos, and the bounties of another summer, but Fall brings its pleasures too and that is my challenge for September's first Wish List contest. What will you miss most about summer and what is your favorite Fall thing? If you list one book (or more) you've nominated for a Whitney, I'll include your name twice in the next drawing.