A Season of Beauty

 Aahhh. Fall!
 Nothing brings me more contentment and appreciation than this season. Watching the leaves turn vibrant colors. Decorating my house with pumpkins and cornstalks. Wearing my cozy hoodies and boots. Going to bonfires and hayrides. Watching my sisters’ goat get positively plump with their thickening coats. And baking! I go crazy for baking fall-inspired flavors, such as pumpkin, apple, caramel, etc. etc!
 It may sound corny, but my family seems to come alive this time of year. We tend to participate in more outdoor activities, such as impromptu games of volleyball and romps with the dogs, rather than in spring or summer. To me, it’s a wonderful time of year, full of beauty and promise.
 Sadly, not everyone feels this way. I have known people personally who hate this season. I can understand their reasoning: chillier temperatures, darker evenings, and the inevitable winter that’s right around the corner.
 However, I choose to look at the fall as one last gift of beauty before the cold days of winter descend. And, I refuse to allow myself to miss what opportunities this season may hold for me. Maybe a framed snapshot of my parent’s fields, awash with color. Or a walk down the leaf-strewn driveway with my sister. I don’t want to spend this whole season with my head down, in the mullygrubs, just because it’s not what I would prefer for this time.
 I’m trying to take on that attitude about life, as well. When I’m in a possibly less-than-ideal season, I don’t want to miss out on what it has to offer because I’m wishing for it to end, or dreading what’s to come. I choose to look at this time of my life as a season of beauty and opportunity; it’s a chance to grow in contentment and appreciation for what is front of me right now. Whatever it may be.
 I know that I have to have those seasons of fall and even winter, so that I may fully enjoy the seasons of spring and summer. I would never be able to witness the trees’ new blossoms if they never shed their former glory. The trickling spring beds would soon dry up if not for the fall rains and winter snows. The fields would never produce their bounty of wheat, corn, or flowers if they did not have those seasons of rest that autumn brings. I can’t have one without the other. And if I had nothing but spring rains and flowers, it's inevitable that I would soon grow weary of those. Maybe it’s those “undesirable” seasons that teach me to appreciate the others. They all work together to create this wonderful, beautiful life that I’m a part of.
 So, this fall, I challenge you to look at this season of your life differently. Whether it’s this fall season, or a time of singleness, or a challenging job situation. Choose to have an optimistic view. Look for the beauty in it. Learn from it. Grow with it. Make memories. And always find contentment in being…
                                                                                    In His Grip!
                                                                                    Crystal

"To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.”
― Albert Camus

“You expected to be sad in the fall. Part of you died each year when the leaves fell from the trees and their branches were bare against the wind and the cold, wintery light. But you knew there would always be the spring, as you knew the river would flow again after it was frozen."― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast       

“Fall has always been my favorite season. The time when everything bursts with its last beauty, as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale.”
― Lauren DeStefano, Wither