Ode to Autumn

Let’s hear it for autumn, often considered the best of all seasons. It officially started Tuesday, but the nip in the air suggested that it was already under way a couple of weeks ago.

What makes fall so special? First, there’s fall food. The sharp crack when you bite into an apple right off the tree is one of the many fall pleasures. Corn on the cob, so fresh that the young kernels are sweet to the taste, that’s another. Pumpkins, melons and squash are everywhere. Oceanside wild rose bushes are laden with hips, just waiting to be made into jams and jellies for future cold winter fare. And don’t forget the berries. Blackberries are the favorite of one of the area’s leading season-watchers, Joy Sprague, the postmaster on Islesford. She relishes the berries on the outside vines, warmed by the afternoon sun.

But she especially likes to risk thorn scratches to gather the cool, plump ones in the shade, so ripe that they practically drop into her palm.

Eating isn’t everything, of course. The whole atmosphere changes with the coming of crisp, crystal-clear fall days. Traffic has mercifully thinned out with the departure of summer friends. The mosquitoes are mostly gone, too. The pace has slowed down after the frenetic months of July and August. A hike in Acadia National Park no longer means searching for a parking place and dodging crowds of vacationers. It has once again become an opportunity for meditation, enjoying the views, and a little peace and quiet.

But fall is less an end than a beginning. For the kids (as well as their parents), school has taken up. After a summer of outside activities, the serious work season resumes. Jewish people got this a long time ago. Their New Year, Rosh Hashana, begins at sundown on Sept. 26.

So let’s get on with it. Enjoy the fall, appreciate its majestic effect on Maine – and stack wood for the winter.