“The leaves are changing; I feel poetry in the air.”
Laura Jaworski
Autumn is here! September is a comforting month, the gentle turning of a page in your well-loved paperback year. The month has barely dawned and already I’ve burned up all my pumpkin spice and apple cider candles. The first day of fall isn’t even here yet, for goodness sake, but I suppose that’s some indication of how I feel about it being September.
This week has been a week of many autumnal “firsts”—first pumpkin spice latte, first foggy morning run, first pumpkin patch sign by the side of the road, first sighting of harvest-themed decor in all the stores. In the spirit of all these autumnal changes, let’s sit down and chat about all things autumn, coziness, and books.
Let’s start with a broad-brushstroke life update. While my younger siblings have whipped out their sharpened pencils and notebooks for school again, I remain as free as a hedgehog in a pumpkin patch. I’m taking this year off to save up money for tuition again, so I’m waiting tables and working at a little bakery on the side. I’ve just begun paperwork for reapplication, so Lord willing, I’ll begin my final semester this coming spring and graduate in May 2020!
Out at the farm, the apple harvest has come in by the basket load. We are welcoming the season of apple crisp and apple cider with wide open arms. The local brownies seem to be delivering cans of pumpkin to our pantry, as well. Our stash is accumulating.
And another exciting update…my family has adopted kittens! We’ve named them Felix, Felicity, and Gus Pike—after our beloved characters from Road to Avonlea (which, incidentally, is a very autumnal show, if you’re wondering).
Want to see their unofficial family portrait?
Speaking of Road to Avonlea, the long-anticipated Anne of Green Gables marathon has begun. My mom and I were debating which TV show to rewatch (Lark Rise to Candleford? North and South? Figure out what the hype about Gilmore Girls is all about?) and after reviewing our options, we settled on the original Anne of Green Gables movies because they are—well, they are just classic autumnal goodness, aren’t they?
Now, for a writing update: despite being distracted with a shiny new plot bunny, I’m remaining faithful and true to my current novel-in-progress and just clocked the 50,000 word mark. If all goes according to plan, I should be able to finish this novel in the next two months, allowing me to write the aforementioned Shiny New Story Idea for November’s National Novel Writing Month (known fondly as Nanowrimo). Autumn tends to be an creatively-charged season. I’m excited to see how it all turns out.
I’ve been exploring local bookstores recently, and just the other day I found these little gems at a tiny used bookstore in Grover Beach. I read Colum McCann’s Transatlantic last fall while I was in Ireland (I hadn’t planned on adding it to my library, so it was pure serendipity to find it). Njal’s Saga is considered to be the finest 13th-century Icelandic saga, narrating warfare between several clans and families (and if it’s anything like Beowulf, consider me stoked). Last but definitely not least, I’ve heard on good authority (aka my best friend from college) that The God of Small Things is a masterpiece. I hope to delve into it as soon as I finish my current read (Markus Zusak’s Bridge of Clay).
Meanwhile I’ve been loving my new room in all its cheery, soul-filling, twinkly-lit, hardwood-floored, autumn-candled splendor. I’m still on the hunt for a new bed frame, but I’m happy with the rest of the room. The current mood has been:
- “crisp leaves and lattes” spotify playlist on repeat
- windows flung open to let in the early autumn sunshine
- tones of cool blue and raspberry mauve
- pumpkin spice everything
- craving apple cider and oatmeal raisin cookies
- hedgehogs, as they are the patron spirit animals of autumn
Today’s late afternoon sunshine is warm and buttery, like sinking your teeth into an oatmeal raisin cookie fresh from the oven. I’m off for a walk down the lane; let’s go enjoy this delicious September while it lasts.
<3 Olivia Grace
