O, October......

It's October...the first glorious, beautiful, chill days of October. Why do I love this month so much? All the good things that have come to me as a woman--my marriage, my sons--came to me in the month of September. But October and I have had a kinship that goes way back... Maybe--being a redhead--it's the way that Nature finally adopts my own hues; maybe its the chill of the air and the luxury of cooking and eating squash and apples and pumpkin; maybe it's the most favourite of all my favourite holidays...Halloween: a time of fun and mystery, laughter and a bit of fright; Could it be that the Celtic half of me remembers the ancient celebration of Samhain and still 'sees' this as the New Year? Or is it that I feel most of all, at this time of year, the touch of those loved ones who have passed beyond this earthly life? I feel an urge to set extra places at the dinner table and offer an extra cup of coffee to the Autumn mornings in honor and love to those I miss most. I want to welcome them...in this month when the veil between the worlds in thin; I want them to know they are still welcome in my heart and in my home. I want them to feel the joy I have in this beautiful colourful glorious mysterious month and know that it came from them.

It's October...and I feel on fire creatively. I have so many ideas and inspirations; there is no way I can tend to them all. Everything excites me; it's so beautiful... all of it; the smells, the colours; the chill air; the sky in the daytime; the sky at night; leaves; harvest; pumpkins; gourds; candy; apples; cider;skeletons; ghosts; witches; haunted houses;creepy graveyards;trick or treaters, the fall of leaves ;the fade of the summer colours and flowers...everything. I stop at farmstands and local pick-your-own orchards and pumpkin patches and I want to have as many of the apples and pumpkins and gourds as I can. I can't get enough of them. The pumpkins are always my favourites. I love them; their moony roundness; whether perfect or not; their colour; the feel of them under fingertips or in hand the weight of them. I feel sorry for the ones that get left behind ; passed over because of some 'imperfection'. I want them all. And apples...I can't pick enough apples;make enough sauce; bake enough pies...such a simple and perfect thing.

I'm endeavouring to capture all of this; this feeling and get it onto paper, canvas, fabric, whatever...while it's fresh and full of energy.

It's always been the transition seasons that have held my heart; Spring and Autumn... Summer and Winter are lovely, but there's something about Spring and Autumn. Especially Autumn....especially October...