Clouds and Memories
By Patty Gross
19 Sep 2009
The sky suddenly became very overcast, and the clouds appeared to be suspended above the trees in the forest. It was lovely to see the newly changing colors of autumn in this large field near the coast of Maine. Autumn....the word alone brings fond, nostalgic memories to mind. Memories of our hometown halloween parade in which my dear sister and I marched as proud members of the high school band, begger's night, giving birth to my critically ill son on trick or treat night. Thanks be to God, he did survive that frightening night of his birth and is a strapping man with four children of his own now. With a melancholy whimsy I recall bobbing for apples, apple pies, pumpkin carving and pumpkin pies, the smell of bread baking in the oven, magnificant leaves dancing in wild circles as the wind turned them into colorful dust devils.......but most of all I recall the childlike enthusiasm my mother exhibited (so far removed from me now as she exists alone in her Alzheimer's world) while she decorated every room of the family home with "scary" delights in that gathering place on Stacy Road......so many vivid memories of years long gone by. I notice and embrace the odor of clean, fresh air found only during autumn. The smell of burning leaves and smoke coming from the woodstoves are so common and memorable here in Maine. I have been most fortunate to live in such a remarkably beautiful place, where endless photo opportunities exist each and every day. When the leaves have reached peak in the Pinetree State, the huge forests resemble a gigantic lighted Christmas tree created by the vibrant and brilliant colors of the billions of leaves. And so these are but a few of the thoughts which were brought to mind while I stood in the field as my dog ran free, delighting in her favorite activity of squirrel chasing. It was a good day, a peaceful day, a day filled with sweet memories. It was an autumn day of remembrance. Perhaps the first day of autumn should be a holiday. A day to give thought to our childhood and adult memories....the happy, the good, the nostalgic, and the sad. They all deserve our observance, for these memories are a large part of who we are today.
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