Can't get enough of autumn

It's been 12 years since I have spent an autumn in the States, specifically Minnesota. When we first moved to China, autumn was joke, because we lived surrounded by concrete. The only way we knew it was fall was because people suddenly began wearing excessive layers of clothing and the air turned dry and cooler. I heard rumors of a place where you could see some color change in the leaves, but with young children it never seemed worth the effort to bike or taxi there.

Since moving back, I have to say that China has somehow also improved how they do autumn, don't ask me how. Probably it's due to an increase in foliage. Last fall the leaves along the canal where we ran turned such a dark red it looked like there was fire lining it. Here, we've recently discovered a vast park just to the west of us full of trees. They may not be the kind to change color, but they are certainly a beautiful place to spend these cooler days.

What's also changed is my desire to recapture fall. In my memory, autumn in MN has become an endless stream of apple and pumpkin picking, huddling under blankets at football games, jumping in piles of crunchy leaves, and long walks in the colored woods. I realize this is far from reality, but I'm on a quest to enjoy similar things. So I'm making soups and bread, and roasting pumpkin seeds, and finding ways to go to apple orchards and pumpkin patches (yes, they do exist here). It was such a joy to buy a little pumpkin today (for cooking, not carving). As I type, I am wearing a burnt orange shirt and matching scarf, and what I like to call my brown "Oliver Twist hat." It makes me feel very autumny. We'll see if I can get my fill this year.