The Kind of September

“The early morning light was over everything and summer had glanced back and waved a fleeting hand at the day with soft airs and the lingering warmth of sunshine.”

One of my dearest friends passed along that quote to me and I think it perfectly matches the poignant days of September when summer blows its farewell kiss.  We are having beautiful September days in New England.  It is too soon for the leaves to change colors but signs of autumn are everywhere – the sea is steel grey from a distance and mornings are refreshingly cool.  Although I’m not yet up to unpacking sweaters, I do believe I will be wearing them soon.  Sweater Days are on our doorstep and the muse is perched upon my shoulder again.


Golden days inspire me with nostalgia.  Memories are so much more heartrending because September’s backdrop is postcard blue skies and whispering breezes.  It’s as if everything that happens in September is something lovely to be kept beside your pillow.

I ran into a sweet high school boyfriend at our town’s annual parade one September long ago –  the day before we were both due back on college campuses.  More than a year had passed since our tender teenage parting but we spent a happy hour sitting together on the parade sidelines with warm rays of sun bathing us in a lemon glow.  When the parade ended, the crowd snapped shut folding chairs and meandered away leaving us alone on the sidewalk.  We knew the time had come to say goodbye.  I stood and shyly looked into his surprisingly misty eyes and felt a tightening lump in my throat which made it impossible to speak. He reached out and softly ran his knuckle up my bare arm as he looked back into my eyes.  Just before he turned and disappeared behind a grove of trees in the park, he mouthed a soundless sad “goodbye”.  On my way home, on streets and alleys so familiar I can name them today, I knew my friend and I had grown up.  And then, just then… I felt a shiver in the breeze that told me summer was gone.