This Fall Was a Major Trip for Me

This past week the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage said to me rather casually, “I guess you know today is November?”

She’s always joking with me and I assumed this was one of her jokes.

“You can’t fool me,” I said quite sarcastically, “I know it’s October.”

With that, she led me to the refrigerator where she had a calendar and pointed to me that today was the first day of November.

It was hard for me to believe it; I thought she had made that calendar up herself. After thinking for a few moments, I concluded that she was right. After all, she’s always right and I’m always left holding the bag.

With a little bit of sadness in my voice I said to her, “Where in the world did October go? I’m not finished with October yet.”

“Finished or not,” she said laughingly, “October is over and it is now November.”

I like to enjoy my time and I did not believe I had fully enjoyed all of October yet. That's just the way life is. Here today, gone tomorrow. October yesterday, November today. When will all of this nonsense stop?

I should have noticed it was November because the whole house smelled of roast turkey in the oven. It is in November that we celebrate Thanksgiving. My wife had already purchased the turkey and was in the process of cooking it for Thanksgiving.

The only turkey we’re not really grateful for is Yours Truly.

When Fall comes, you would think I would be prepared. Fall brings a different attitude in things. All of the nice warm weather is gone and now we have a little bit of Chilly Willy weather.

Summertime is the time to be a little lazy and not get too worked up about anything. The attitude I have during the summer is, “There’s always tomorrow.”

The attitude of the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage is, “There’s only today.”

Summertime cultivates a sense of laziness in my bones. I can get away with doing the summer because I can always complain about the heat. “It’s too hot to do anything today.” I usually get away with it.

Tripping into November that attitude and excuse goes out the window.

There is an expectancy from the other resident in our home that there is a lot of work to do in preparation for Thanksgiving and Christmas and New Year’s Eve and it all has to be done now. Then, she produces her infamous “Honey-Do-List” and hands it to me.

Oh, how I miss the summer time.

I know Fall comes every year, but for some reason it always catches me by surprise.

Just like in the sixth grade. Our teacher gave us a test every Friday, but when Friday came, it was a surprise to us. I guess I have brought that attitude into adulthood.

Getting things done is the priority of my wife, which she pushes off on to me. My attitude is that if it gets done, it gets done and if it doesn’t get done, I’ll do it tomorrow.

Between November and December, there are 61 days. That sounds like a lot of time, but when you have to squeeze into 61 days 999 items from the “Honey-Do-List” it just does not seem possible. My wife, however, can do that and more in 61 days.

Being the gracious husband I have been all these years, I have never yet asked her how she does it. Because I know, if I asked, she will tell. There are some things I don’t need to know and that is one.

Another problem I have with Fall is the weather. All summer long, I have grown accustomed to wearing short sleeve shirts. I like short sleeve shirts. When Fall comes, particularly November, the weather changes and I need to step up my game to long sleeve shirts.

I don’t have any problem so to speak with long sleeve shirts. I just prefer a short sleeve shirt. But you know the weather. It demands long sleeve shirts in the Fall. Of course, when fall disappears and winter steps up, the long sleeve shirt is transferred into a sweater. And you know what sweaters are like.

I would not mind the Fall so bad if it wasn’t so busy. Beginning with the Halloween celebration, whatever that is, and going all the way down the road to the New Year’s Eve celebration is one celebration after another.

As I was musing on all of these aspects of the Fall season, my wife brought me a hot apple cider tea. It is one of my favorite drinks. She said as she brought it to me, “I know Fall is here and I thought you might enjoy this hot apple cider tea.”

All summer long, I had forgotten about this favorite drink of mine. When she brought it to me, I could not keep a smile off of my face. After my first sip, I sat back in my chair and said loudly so everybody in the house could hear, “I’m glad it’s Fall.”

While I was drinking my hot apple cider tea, I mused on a verse from the Psalms. “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24).

Every day brings it some reason to rejoice in the Lord. My job is to find that reason.