Autumn?

Can you believe the equinox is still nearly a month away?

As the Summer wears on and the hurricane season starts back home, the difference between home and here is once again driven home to me. Just a fortnight ago I could ride home from the pub in the twilight without the aid of lights; the morning sun awoke me as it came streaming through my windows at 04:45. I can now easily oversleep until the sun rises at 06:30 and it is dark well before the first bell rings.

It is a bit sad really, the long daylight hours are nice. I enjoy the difference in daylight between Summer and Winter. Perhaps not as much as we experience here in London, but some difference is nice. Back in Colorado there is a pronounced difference that is noticeable but less extreme than it is here. Having grown up in the tropics, phrases like "the long nights of winter" that I read in books or poems didn't make any more sense to me than the descriptions of autumn colors.

I now appreciate the phrases and the implications. Soon, it will be time to start thinking of the affects of Seasonal Affective Disorder; time to verify that the lights on my bike have good batteries and that spares are around; time to dredge-up the gloves. It will be time to get ready for winter.

Oh well, at least here, the winters are not usually accompanied by snow that is measured in feet! There is that in its favor. Winters in London tend to be on the mild side compared to other places I have lived, like Colorado and Minnesota. Both of which have latitudes considerably further south than here. I guess I shall have to embrace the mild days I have left this Summer and just prepare for the Fall, it is only a few short weeks away!

I hope that wherever you are today, there are plenty good, pleasant days of Summer left this year!

Don Bergquist - 29 August 2006 - Thames Ditton, Surrey, UK