Gail Kittleson’s a late-blooming writer. The transition from non-fiction to fiction surprised her, but she’s hanging on for the ride. An Iowa native, she and her husband live in N. Iowa where they enjoy their family and Gail teaches a small creative writing class in her home. Walking provides perennial pleasure, as do gardening and bicycling. In winter, an Arizona mountain town offers wonderful trails to hike and plenty of novel fodder Gail loves connecting with new folks, so please feel free to contact her.
Summer’s End
by Gail Kittleson
It’s just August, summer-lovers would say, but here in northern Iowa, autumn encroaches. The zinnias are past full bloom, for one thing, and so are our magenta phlox. Great summer rains have kept the lawns green, but stray colored leaves already waft from our maples.
In spite of daytime temps in the nineties, fall rides the air. Last night we sat out on a deck while the grandkids played ball with a cousin’s border collie, and about eight-thirty, a chill set in. Of course, the mosquitoes found us, too, so we went inside.
But that telltale chilliness—the kind that makes you wish you had a sweater handy—there’s no denying it. We can ignore it, fill our lives with school shopping and our calendars with activities, but that scratchy, crinkly-leaved season will arrive sooner than we think.
Personally, I love the change. It’s one of the main reasons to live in the Midwest, in my humble opinion. Spring used to be my favorite, while autumn brought wistfulness—but that was when I was young and summer’s heat caused me less hassle.
Now, I say, “Bring on the cool! Bring on the colors—anything to be rid of this oppressive humid weather. Give me jeans and a cardigan.”
It this attitude alteration all about age? I don’t know, and when you’ve spent much of your life analyzing, who cares if it’s about age? It is what it is.
I wish I’d adopted the “it is what it is” attitude years ago. There’d have been fewer struggles over the next change on the horizon, the next shocker around the corner.
Life’s full of them, and the sooner we face it, the better. Embracing this truth makes a lot of difference. We learn to let go and “go with the flow”, as they say. We find that living and letting live actually helps us focus on what matters most, the number one priority—our own lives.
We can control nothing else, so why not use our own power of choice to control what we can?
Your destiny is to fulfill those things upon which
you focus most intently. So choose to keep your
focus on that which is truly magnificent, beautiful,
uplifting and joyful. Your life is always moving
toward something.
Ralph Marston
In the midst of ever-present change, we take a lesson from the trees—accept what comes and let change color our moments in unexpected ways. The next season brings its own glory, but embrace this one’s beauty, even as it fades.
Catching Up with Daylight: A Journey to Wholeness
Many of us long for rest, as the author did while renovating an old house after her husbands first deployment to Iraq. Yet a different hunger undergirded that desire: a hunger for wholeness.
You can purchase this book online at these links:
Leave a Reply