55 MAGNOLIA JOURNAL fall 2019
A change is in the air; a great mellowing is at work. It’s in the wind, in
the earth, inside each and every one of us. And somewhere, not far off
in the distance, woodsmoke is seasoning the evening sky.
Each year, autumn arrives all bluster and, like an old friend, invites us
to come outside and enjoy a few more days of color and light. In the
fall, we watch the sky. We listen for rain. We stop to watch the trees and
their painted leaves. We pack away our beach chairs and unpack our
woolen socks. We settle into our long pants and our sturdy boots and
our trusty old raincoats. We return to books half-read and sweaters
half-knitted and favorite old recipes, written in our mother’s hand.
This time of year, we remember our love for pumpkin and pecans; we
pick barrels of apples and bake with buckets of cinnamon.
Each year, autumn reminds us to return to the routines that anchor our
lives in time. We feel nostalgia deeply and embrace ritual fiercely. We
go home again. We relive glory days. We gather together in September
stadiums, around October bonfires, and at long November tables. And
in the shadow of the dimming natural world, we tell and retell tales.
In this way, every autumn is another turned page, another chapter
completed, a bit more perspective on the full story of our lives: the
rising and falling, the discovery and loss, the sacrifice and surprise.
And isn’t this the story of all of life, of ends that follow beginnings
and then make room for new beginnings? Without this rhythm, this
eternal cycle, how could we ever be whole?
So, let’s harvest all the light and life and goodness that we can.
Here and now, during the sweet golden hour of the year.
—WORDS BY AUSTIN SAILSBURY
ART BY
HILARY O
SW
ALD & REBECCA W
ELLER
