'Tis the Season for Fall Rituals – Barbara Wackerle Baker

 

 

It’s been an amazing and warm fall in Alberta. I almost managed to keep my tradition of wearing shorts from May long weekend until Thanksgiving. But then it snowed. Eight inches. A few people felt that was a weak excuse on my part. Luckily, it melted the very next day and I wore shorts again.

   

    The reason I had to wear pants - a very

    serious game of hide and seek took place

    before the snow melted

The aspen and poplar trees are bare now. Crunchy leaves cover the forest floors. But I haven't smelled fall yet. You know that aroma—damp dirt, rotting leaves. I haven't found it.

Don't get me wrong. I love the extra days of autumn we're having and am totally aware winter can happen at any hour...even if there's no fall smell in the air. Which means it's time to prepare for its entrance.

Is it possible a trickster ghost left his glasses behind?

Here’s my fall things-to-do checklist:

-   replace batteries in smoke detectors. There will be no stumbling around at 3 AM to locate the chirping culprit.

-   adjust the body’s circadian rhythm to get in sync with time change. Ooops, not this year (or ever again in Alberta). Instead, I’ll buy toques with USB headlamps for the grandkids’ trek to school in the dark. They’re lucky they don’t have to walk uphill both ways in the snow.

-   change the furnace filter

-   continue the merits of the studded snow tire discussion with spouse

-   move long sleeved shirts and pants to the front of the closet. Keep one pair of shorts handy just in case.

-   put flannel sheets back on the bed. Resist the urge to test them out in the middle of the afternoon.

-    I didn’t get on the pumpkin spice wagon, so I don’t have to get off it

-    dig out snow scrapers and snow shovels. A sure guarantee it won’t snow for weeks, right? 

-    stack and cover outdoor furniture for hibernation

-    check expiry dates of emergency food rations in the car and replace as required

-    buy numerous packs of Fisherman’s Friend lozenges and put in parka pockets

-    stuff toques and mismatched gloves in vehicles. Similar to the missing-sock-in-the-dryer conundrum.

-    swap out slip-ons, flip flops and hikers for a variety of winter boots

-    let’s not forget the Christmas decoration dispute - is it too tacky to put them up this early? Or should we wait until it’s 20 below and a good old-fashioned blizzard blows in? Nothing says holiday spirit like untangling strings of lights with frozen fingers.

After all tasks are complete, I make a steaming cup of hot chocolate (with mini marshmallows bobbing on top), put my feet up in front of the fireplace, dream of powder days and first tracks while Johnny Reid croons in the background. 

But this is Alberta. By Friday I might have to take the lawn chairs out of hibernation. And if I'm lucky, maybe I'll get a whiff of the pungent smells of fall before winter covers it up. 

What fall routines happen in your household? Do you enjoy the changing of seasons?

Baker, Barbara - BWL Publishing Inc. (bookswelove.net)

Barbara Baker Author Page Facebook 

 

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