The Wisdom of Paying Attention

The day started out cool and cloudy.  Then a few spritzes of shower came through.  Now the sun is shining and things are warming up some.  There was just enough rain to clean off the leaves of the trees that are blossoming out in reds, yellows, and some browns.  The tomato vines are dead; but there are some green tomatoes on them that we can bring in and try to ripen.  Things have slowed considerably outdoors in the past couple of weeks, and the sun is setting ever more quickly and is delaying rising more each day.

Fall.  Autumn.  Whichever you call it, this season is full of conundrum and contrast.  The first part of the season is a flurry of ripening and production.  Tomatoes ripen at a fast pace.  Flowers start to go to seed (if they produce seeds).  Roses begin to bloom again.  Mums and other fall flowers begin to bloom.  Grass, it seems, takes off and grows…a lot.

Yet it is also the beginning of shut-down.  Leaves on trees begin to ever so slightly droop and change color at the edges.  Vines don’t spread much.  Plants that have already produced their fruit begin to look ragged and haggard.  It’s noticeably cooler now than it was just a couple of weeks ago.

It doesn’t take long to make the change.  A few cooler nights and a couple of frosts enhance any changes already in the making.  Even people who appreciate the colors and cooler temperatures are beginning to think about hunkering down for the long winter ahead.  Many of us begin, perhaps unconsciously, to bring on extra provisions.  We fill the freezer and canning jars.  We break out the sweaters and jackets.  We start wearing extra layers.  We check on things like hats and gloves, boots and shovels, de-icer and winter tires.

And so it goes (to borrow a phrase).  We can’t change anything about the onrush of fall and winter.  Oh, we may move to Florida for the winter, but we can’t change anything either here or there having to do with the weather or the environment.

I don’t know how many more times I’ll prepare for winter.  I do know that I’ve already prepared for winter many more times than I have yet to go.  But I also know that the One who created autumn, winter, the change of seasons, and all that go with it is the true Unchanging One…that however many more I have to prepare for, He will be there with me encouraging, strengthening, leading.  I’d be wise to pay attention to Him.