Fall brings a change of pace
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By Olivia West
MOUNT AYR, Iowa — There is something about fall in Ringgold County that makes one notice things that might otherwise be overlooked.
The mornings become a little cooler. The sun sets a little earlier. Cornfields begin to turn brown, leaves start showing their first hints of color and the familiar smell of harvest seems to settle over the countryside.
After the heat and humidity of summer, those first cool mornings are usually welcomed. Windows that have been shut tight against the summer heat are opened, jackets come out of closets and coffee seems to taste a little better when there is a chill in the air.
Fall also brings a change in the rhythm of life around the county. Farmers are watching the weather and preparing for another harvest season. Fields that have been green for months begin changing almost overnight as combines make their way through the corn and soybean fields.
In town, football and volleyball become regular parts of the weekly schedule, school activities fill calendars and Friday nights take on a familiar fall routine.
For families, fall means hayrides, bonfires, pumpkin patches, Halloween decorations and weekends spent outdoors before winter arrives.
For others, it simply means enjoying a quiet afternoon when the temperatures are comfortable and the mosquitoes have finally disappeared.
For a few weeks, the trees around Ringgold County provide their own version of a fall parade. Green slowly gives way to yellow, orange and red before the wind eventually carries the leaves to the ground.
Fall doesn’t stay long.
That may be part of what makes people appreciate it. Summer seems to stretch on forever, while winter can feel like it has no end. Fall arrives somewhere in between, gives us a few weeks of comfortable weather and beautiful scenery, and then quietly moves on.
Before long, the fields will be bare, the trees will be mostly empty and winter coats will become a daily necessity.
But for now, there is still plenty of fall left to enjoy. So take a drive down a country road, watch a sunset, walk through the leaves or simply sit outside on a cool evening.
Around here, sometimes the best part of fall is doing absolutely nothing — and having a pretty good view while you’re doing it.
