Autumn and all it portends

Yes, depending on my mood and where I am I use my calendar to daydream some. I keep one in my office and one at home. I can either look at scenery from Indiana’s covered bridges and New England’s leaves to the hills of the Ozarks and California redwoods or switch my thoughts to dogs and puppies for a few moments enjoying the pictures of wonder and innocence. On my dog calendar there are a variety of photos -- one for every day of the year, and each reminds me of how with proper care and attention these remarkable creatures become loyal, devoted and trusting pals.

I wonder what kind of calendar you have to bring some pleasure into your day -- not just more busyness. People often buy a calendar of Turkey to take home to remind them of their trip.

I also like to get free calendars. Have you ever been given a free calendar that had so much written on it already you had no room to write your own plans for your life?

I appreciate historic buildings and different faiths. I love visiting any kind of historic religious institution where ever I am. Once when I visited a Catholic church in the States I was given a free calendar by the nice nun who showed me around the premises. I did not realize until I got home that the pages had scarcely any room to write any notes on, for all the Holy Days of Obligation the Catholics had were printed on it. I was disappointed there was no room to note any time for myself because of all the activities already planned.

I must confess that I study calendars like I sometimes read a book due to limited time. I turn the calendar pages to October to see what the first day of autumn looks like. Then I turn back to May and enjoy the spring pages. Since a young age, I have always had a long and torrid love affair with the autumn. I love when the season is just beginning. Just when there is beginning to be a nip in the air that winter is around the corner. I remember going on drives with my grandparents on Sunday afternoons. We’d head to the Ozarks or Ouchita mountains. I think everyone should do this once in their life. Nobody should be deprived of those views. You’ll see fantastic fall foliage splashing the countryside and trees with a rainbow of colors.

Shortly after moving to Turkey I realized that I had sacrificed seeing any true signs of fall. I visited Bolu and that was the closest to my glowing memories I had from back home. If you have just moved here, you can drive towards Sile just north of Istanbul on the Black Sea or go to Bolu for your glimpse of fall but don’t have too high of expectations or you won’t appreciate what you do see.

The first few years I lived in Turkey my mother used to send me through the regular mail some of the beautiful leaves she found. She wanted to share some of the fall season with me. Of course, by the time they had arrived the beauty she had seen in them had disappeared. It was the thought that counted. But I did wonder just what the Turkish customs officer and postman must have imagined each time the envelope arrived with dried, crumbled pieces of leaves.

Of course, the problem with fall is that eventually the leaves will drop to the ground and somebody has to rake them up. My grandparents loved their ritual drive with grandkids admiring the fall leaves. In my grandfather’s tool shed he had his lawn edger, shovel, rakes and other essential tools. He also knew that his grandchildren would rake the leaves up when the time came and our hard work would be modestly rewarded. But for the moment we just enjoyed the scenery.