the awe in autumn

The one thing about Northwest weather we can always count on is that we can never count on Northwest weather. We've shivered on an eighty-degree July day when strong, chill winds gusted relentlessly off the ocean. We've sweated through a mid-March seaside afternoon when we'd normally be snowed in, bundled head to toe in heavy layers. (Not even the typically frigid bay breezes restored the anticipated wintry bite to the summer-like air.) And yesterday, while we had the presence of mind to dress for the forecasted cool and overcast autumn day, we were greeted instead by the sunniest sun and bluest blue skies as they teamed up to make an alleged sixty-seven degrees feel closer to eighty.

Even in our over-insulated, overheated states, however, we shared a marvelous afternoon traipsing down colorful, maple-lined sidewalks and throughout the surrounding habitat. Beneath a blinding sun, our intrepid trio hiked for miles, traversing every trail, crossing every one of the many bridges spanning the soggier areas of the wetlands. While it was, alas, too late in the year to catch sight of the herons and other wildlife, we did detect the chorus of croaking tree frogs that, in our previous home, had become the soundtrack of every dusk 'til dawn. Amidst this idyllic landscape of vibrant fall hues, we also spotted a touch of light magic (a solitary scarlet skimmer alighted on the bridge railing beside us, a hefty variety of dragonfly with translucent wings that sparkled like copper glitter) and a touch of dark magic (a snakeless Death Eater skull formed in the wispy clouds directly ahead of us). Though we spied nary a witch, wizard, or wand, we can only presume The Order of the Phoenix already had the park surrounded, doing what they do best and sparing us the gruesome fates that awaited at the hands of Voldemort's diabolical acolytes. (Such drama for a quiet Sunday afternoon! And how unexpectedly and deliciously Halloweenish--unless you've never heard of, read, or watched Harry Potter; in which case, you probably think we've lost the plot in the totally doolally, entirely British sense of the phrase.)

Temperature and close-call-with-any-one-of-the-unforgivable-curses aside, it was a gorgeous day, bursting with the awe of autumn and the three gigantic smiles that lasted all the way back home and well into the evening.