November heavy fog on road near
Baden, Austria - Wikipedia
According to Autumn Anthology, November is a month of surprises. The first big surprise of November is how quickly it shows up! Everyone enjoys the fun festivities of Halloween: parties, costumes and candy, but we all wake up the next day and think “It’s November already?” November 1st always seems a little sullen because of that; the party that is October has ended. This month has its own holiday of course, but Thanksgiving seems almost years away on November 1st. I have not met many people who list November as their favorite month.
However, there are other surprises to be found in November. It can be a month of great beauty if one keeps an eye out for it. November has a reputation of being duller than the other autumn months; the bright yellows and oranges of September and October have faded to ochre and brown. The grey in the air carries with its reminders of the cold winter ahead. Most would just as soon plow through November’s seemingly bleak palette and go straight for the festive reds, greens and silvers of December. There is, however, something warm and inviting about this forgotten month. The skies are so heavy with future rain and snow that the greys take on an almost purple hue. Wind blows the bulk of the orange and red leaves off the trees, where they form a blanket of brown on the ground. The elements are surely shifting in November! It’s a month of rest and hibernation nestled in between two very bright and cheery months. It’s as if we celebrated intensely in October, getting our fill of sweets and friends, and then we have a sort of sleepy sugar crash for most of November. This is our time to refuel, stay home, have conversations and maybe plan future gifts and activities. Then, at the end of November, we have the big feast of Thanksgiving to nourish us and give us energy so we’re up and ready again to celebrate the joys of December!
November can be a wonderful month if we see it for what it is: transition. When one bright color transitions to another along a gradient, there are many quieter colors that are part of that transition. They may not stand out as much as the two colors at the ends of the spectrum, but they are necessary and subtly beautiful; just like November. So let us enjoy this final month of autumn and appreciate the rest, reflection and subdued colorful beauty it brings!
Baden, Austria - Wikipedia
According to Autumn Anthology, November is a month of surprises. The first big surprise of November is how quickly it shows up! Everyone enjoys the fun festivities of Halloween: parties, costumes and candy, but we all wake up the next day and think “It’s November already?” November 1st always seems a little sullen because of that; the party that is October has ended. This month has its own holiday of course, but Thanksgiving seems almost years away on November 1st. I have not met many people who list November as their favorite month.
However, there are other surprises to be found in November. It can be a month of great beauty if one keeps an eye out for it. November has a reputation of being duller than the other autumn months; the bright yellows and oranges of September and October have faded to ochre and brown. The grey in the air carries with its reminders of the cold winter ahead. Most would just as soon plow through November’s seemingly bleak palette and go straight for the festive reds, greens and silvers of December. There is, however, something warm and inviting about this forgotten month. The skies are so heavy with future rain and snow that the greys take on an almost purple hue. Wind blows the bulk of the orange and red leaves off the trees, where they form a blanket of brown on the ground. The elements are surely shifting in November! It’s a month of rest and hibernation nestled in between two very bright and cheery months. It’s as if we celebrated intensely in October, getting our fill of sweets and friends, and then we have a sort of sleepy sugar crash for most of November. This is our time to refuel, stay home, have conversations and maybe plan future gifts and activities. Then, at the end of November, we have the big feast of Thanksgiving to nourish us and give us energy so we’re up and ready again to celebrate the joys of December!
November can be a wonderful month if we see it for what it is: transition. When one bright color transitions to another along a gradient, there are many quieter colors that are part of that transition. They may not stand out as much as the two colors at the ends of the spectrum, but they are necessary and subtly beautiful; just like November. So let us enjoy this final month of autumn and appreciate the rest, reflection and subdued colorful beauty it brings!