Waters Dry Up

October 1st though 5th

Compared to somewhere like California, Boston naturally has a wetter climate. The east coast is blessed with rain in spring, summer, and fall. In the winter the rain turns to snow, but that is another matter. This segment--Waters Dry Up--gets me thinking about the types of rain one gets throughout the season. No doubt, a spring time shower is quite different from a sticky downpour of summer. Then, what about autumn? And what about the waters that will soon dry up?

Thinking about the change of the seasons, autumn is usually not the time of year that one associates with 'gushing rivers' running down the mountain. No, autumn is a resigned type of year, more subtle and melodious. We do not hear the splash of a torrent of water rushing through a mountain ravine; instead, we hear something much more rhythmical and decided. The way is already decided, not being discovered. Whereas spring and summer seem a season of verdant growth, autumn finds its beauty in the process of maturation. The apples hang on the bough, ripening day by day, their juices dried up from what we can see on the surface, though their sweetness lies hidden within.

Literally speaking, Boston has not seen much rain as of late. The rain, if it has fallen, has been brief, mild and misty. The bulk of the days have been fine and cool; the very best of autumn weather. Here and around Cambridge the trees are turning. While certainly not at the height of their beauty, there are many pockets here and there of those early changers that have now lost their leaves. The coldness of winter touches some things sooner than other, but thanks to that, we can enjoy their beauty uniquely and individually--as they do not blend in with the crowd.

Towards the middle of autumn, there seems a calm that falls over the world. A pause, where one looks around wondering what we have stopped for. Now is just such a time. February and August are also such times--the point at which the season cannot progress too much past, or else the end is begun. The beginning of October is that calming stretch of time before the plunge down into the "holiday" season, the celebration of harvest, and Yule. The gushing waters of time have dried up momentarily, and in this pause you can truly see the beauty of the season.