What a Difference a Week Makes

Only one week later, beautiful orange leaves have become a crunchy brown carpet.
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The weather is still unseasonably warm. I am still grateful to be living where there are four distinct seasons.
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Autumn continues to pulsate with the rhythm of life, while its powerful beat continues moving me forward.
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But to where?
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To what?
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Our family visited northeast Iowa again this past weekend, including - once again - a trip to the mighty Mississippi. My soul jumps with recognition when journeying through that part the world. I remember where I came from. Who I aspired to be. Who I am.
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I long for it to whisper secrets of what is to come.
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Plans to prosper, not to harm. Plans for hope and a future.
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Until then, simply rest in love and abide.
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Rhythm of Life

One of the songs Mark and I sang at Carver's Restaurant during our singing waiter era was Rhythm of Life. The lyrics have remained part of my life's soundtrack, reprising around each equinox.

The rhythm of life is a powerful beat,
Puts a tingle in your fingers
and a tingle in your feet,
Rhythm on the inside,
Rhythm on the street,
Yes, the rhythm of life is a powerful beat

Today I am reminded of why I hope to always live in place that pulsates with the rhythm of four distinct seasons...and I hope to be happy when living there.

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Don't let Stross' choice of attire fool you. It is a balmy (almost too balmy) 80° fall day. He simply loves his new Notre Dame coat and cannot wait for the weather to become seasonal.

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What do you hope for on this October day?


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Reasons I Love Autumn

1. My birthday. While not officially part of autumn, it's always near Labor Day – the unofficial start of fall.
2. Schools start too and learning becomes en vogue again.
3. Better apples in the grocery stores.
4. Warm apple pie – another reason to love cinnamon. (And baking pies from scratch just happens to be something I'm good at.)
5. Vegetation challenges sunsets with a new palate: red, yellow, gold, deep orange, tan, brown and – my favorite color for fall – burnt umber.
6. Combines at night transform the landscape like gargantuan, nocturnal ants, as farmers keep one eye on the sky and one ear on the Weather Channel. This is a farmer's time to shine. Always makes me proud somehow.
7. The sound of leaves crunching under my shoes – because that crunching sound when I'm walking is o.k.
8. Hot chocolate – one of my favorite flavors in liquid form.
9. Soups! In autumn, they not only taste good, they help me feel good too.
10. Fireplaces. Ours comes to life, giving our Great Room new life as well.
11. Sweaters – everyone wears them; some wear them extremely well. I aspire to the latter category.
12. Colder days that get colder. The stark reality gives me permission to be inside without guilt.
13. Shorter days – my reminder to get busy living life.
14. The quiet of a dormant season heightens anticipation for seasons with longer days.

I bet there are more than 14 reasons I love autumn. What's one of yours?

A Change of Seasons, A Change in Life with Stross

I couldn't resist vlogging outside on Saturday, and I thought I had some free moments to do just that while Stross was inside doing what we call his "cares." At least six times each day (every four hours), he or, if it's in the middle of the night, we perform his intermittent catherization and attend to his ostomy. He's become fairly independent with this task, and Mark and I have decided to use the four years after high school that many parents think of as "the college years" to help Stross become as independent as possible during his version of college life.

Stross is taking colleges classes each day - either English 100 or Successful Study Strategies - and getting involved in some campus activities. Yet the rest of his day is spent practicing life skills as independently as possible. Things like meal preparation, a bit of cleaning or organizing and his cares.

On Saturday, Stross and I took time to get his bathroom even more organized. Now all the medical supplies he might need are on storage shelves within reach of his wheelchair so he has ready access regardless if Mark or I remember to restock the drawers he can reach from his dressing table.

As you'll see in this vlog, accommodating independence and realizing it are different things. We can get everything within reach and something still can go wrong. And we knew that. That's why we installed a phone by his dressing table and why we encourage him to always have his cell phone charged and ready. Each one of us - Mark, Skye, me - live life on the alert for Stross, which means we all keep our cell phones handy - except for Saturday, when I went to the tree house to vlog on a gorgeous fall afternoon and forgot to take mine with me. Ugh!

On the scale of emergencies, this wasn't a biggie at all. But it did serve as a reminder that our oldest son - a young adult in life years - will always need support within reach.



P.S. - I did remember to give you a tour of the tree house, but it would have made you seasick. I'll do it again sometime. Besides, I need to involve our number one tour guide, Stross.