Nature

“To be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring.” – George Santayana

As the days shorten and the shadows lengthen, I am frequently struck by what I call the urge to “nest”. It happens every fall. That urge to bake pies and make preserves…to have a pot of something savory simmering on the stove and fresh bread or biscuits in the oven…to start or finish a quilt.

Autumn is a season of preparation, in my mind at least. And I wonder if that doesn’t come from some centuries-old place in which people had to do such things just to survive the coming winter — from some internal, primordial clock that signalled that it was time to ready for cold weather.

Here in Nova Scotia, cooler weather has settled upon us unexpectedly — we morphed from hot and humid days only a week or so ago to having frost warnings at night. The crickets’ chirps have slowed and some of the maples display hints of crimson at their leaf tips. It’s the sort of weather that conjures images of hot chocolate, warm sweaters, and books in front of fireplaces. September is a fickle month, however, and probably holds some surprises for us yet, but the urge to “nest” is still as strong.

Seasons do change and with the first meagre hints of Autumn, I get the urge to clean house, so to speak. A perfect time for decluttering closets and drawers before the sweaters and scarves come out to stay.

And also a good time to declutter my blogging shelves. Leaping Greenly, as you will notice from the header, has morphed into All Nature, My Garden. I had a separate blog in which I had hoped to chronicle some trips around the perimeter of the province, something I still hope to do, but rather than keep that blog sitting idly as it waits for such a post, I decided to combine the two into one, and took the All Nature, My Garden title for this blog as it seems to suit me better.

Those who had faved the original All Nature, My Garden, I hope you’ll become a regular reader of this blog and I apologize for pulling the older blog without notice. I hope you’ll find a little bit of something here for every taste, whether it be a floral photo essay or a savoury recipe. As always, I welcome your comments!