“Then summer fades and passes and October comes.  We’ll smell smoke then, and feel an unexpected sharpness, a thrill of nervousness, swift elation, a sense of sadness and departure.”

- Thomas Wolfe

My oldest daughter said to me a few days ago, “It smells like fall”.  With autumn my favorite season, I have long been in tune to its sights, its feel, and, yes, its smell.  She knows of my affinity for this time of year, but I have never mentioned the intricacies of this attraction past the leaves changing into their bright colors.

Beyond my realization that I have underestimated the nine-year-old brain, I was impressed that she would notice these subtle but important aspects of autumn.  Its easy to delight in the season because of its obvious qualities, but much more difficult to find the subtleties that make autumn whole.

© 2009 James A. Fraser