Over the past 17 years of blogging, I'm sure I have mentioned that cold rain is my least favorite weather on many occasions. And I might also have declared my fondness for cool sunshine. Nevertheless, I'll do so again.
An autumn cold front has swept away our prolonged Indian Summer in Missouri and ushered in cool, dry, crystal-clear air. The lower sun brightly illuminates the landscape without producing the heat that we have come to despise. In concert, the local wildlife is invigorated; juncos and white-throated sparrows, here for the winter, are scouring the shrub lines, a white-breasted nuthatch is noisily performing his acrobatics in our large maple tree and a pair of crows are patrolling the neighborhood, intent on evicting any hawks or owls.
Approaching the self-induced frenzy of the Holiday Season, we humans have no excuse to be indoors. There is cool, fresh air to inhale, trails to explore and, if we must, plenty of leaves to rake. Nature, fickle as she is, may not offer these appealing conditions for too long.
