Autumn

Well, it's now officially autumn here in Glasgow. It's light at 7 am and dusk at 4:30. Today was an almost perfect autumn day. The weather channel web site said it was supposed to rain, but I was extremely glad to see that it was wrong. The sky was a gorgeous blue and the air was crisp as I walked down Hyndland road to our staff meeting place. I think autumn is definately my favorite season of the year, but I can't tell you why. One of my friends would say that I express my emotions through music and the seasons, but I'm not entirely sure. I think the part of me that enjoys poetry enjoys the melancholiness (is that a word?) of autumn. I enjoy the happy sadness of walking down the streets as golden trees drip their leaves to the pavement. Part of me enjoys the diminishing daylight and the knowledge that I can go home and have a hot drink and enjoy a nice dinner (when I cook ;-)). I also love the crisp air as it goes through my lungs, autumn mornings are the best, though afternoons are really nice too.
There's another side to autumn though. My spiritual life takes on nuances as the season turns. It's almost as if I slow down, even though I feel guilty for it. I was thinking about it earlier today. Now, I have have never been to Israel, and only a very small part of the Mediterranean world that Paul would have been familiar with. However, in my mind, Israel has always been this desert place. I never could imagine it having trees or much foliage. I always imagined it like some old '60s western. You know, the ones in which the cowboy rides into this town in the middle of the desert and we are asked to believe that a place like this can sustain life. I always wondered where these towns got their food and water, was it all shipped in by the railroad? Well, I'm digressing. I guess, what I'm trying to say is that I was thinking about whether God understands autumn. Now, I know that sounds foolish, and it is. It comes down to remembering that God is working here and now, and that He created this season, that it's part of His world. Anyway, I'm rambling and I think I lost the point. So, don't take any of this as any more than me pondering online.