Seasons of New England
As I mentioned in a previous post, I would like to describe the changing of the seasons you will experience when living in Massachusetts. Since this is Labor Day weekend, I will begin here with my recollection of the seasons.
- First day of school
Labor Day is basically the turning point from Summer to Fall. As it marks the end of Summer, a slight chill begins to take over the warm Summer nights. Children are saying goodbye to their Summer camp counselors and friends; while parents have happily begun the back to school shopping and are looking forward to getting back into the routine of the school year.
As the warmth of the Summer months rescind and the weather turns cooler, everyone has now adjusted to
- Apple Orchards
the routine of the new school year. Take a peek out your window and you will now see all the leaves on the trees have begun to change color. The bright orange and vibrant yellow leaves are clear indicator of Autumn. There is now a brisk, yet refreshing chill in the air. If you take a walk down the street, you hear the “swoosh” as neighbors rake the leaves in their yards and you see children happily running and jumping in the leaf piles. The t-shirts are slowing being covered with warm, cozy sweatshirts. It is now prime Apple Picking season.
Families gather together and head to the orchid in hopes of picking the perfect apples. Once you return home and wash the apples, you realize you have more apples than you know what to do with. Apple pies are baking, applesauce is being prepared and the ever-loved apple crisp is served for dessert with a heaping scoop of vanilla ice cream. When you thought you have had enough sweets from apples, you realize Halloween is fast approaching.
- Typical front steps in Fall
The costume designs are being perfected, pumpkins are now visible on almost every set of front steps and the thoughts of how much candy one can acquire in an evening is the talk of the school. Keep in mind; since this is New England, those costumes need to be larger than the regular size clothing you purchase, as you will have many layers of clothing underneath. Halloween comes and goes as quickly as the Trick-or-Treaters consume the candy. As the empty candy wrappers and stray leaves are tussled around by the breeze, the scent in the air and the sight of smoke from chimneys are all you need to know Thanksgiving is fastly approaching.
Again, you head out to the market and purchase the best turkey you can find. Of course, along with the turkey comes all the fixings…stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, corn, butternut squash, rolls, home made cranberry sauce (fresh from the bogs) and homemade apple pie. A feast fit for a king, it takes hours to prepare and only minutes to eat. After all the cooking and clean up, you take a moment to enjoy the laughter of the children playing in the last of the leaves and listen to the men yell at the football players on the television.
Once all the Thanksgiving leftovers have been gobbled up and all the out of town visitors have returned home, New Englanders start preparing for the long, cold season. When Winter is close on the horizon, the briskness in the air turns colder and the happy whistling of the birds begins to diminish. Some may find it hard to believe, but the smell of snow is in the air.
- First snow of the season
The first snowfall of the season is always a much-anticipated event. The school age children hope for a storm in excitement for a “snow day”. Parents find the children they cannot get up out of bed for school are now awake before they are. They are glued in front of the television in hopes of seeing their school named on the list of cancellations. Parents have already made arrangements for someone to care for their children in the event of a “snow day”. Snow shovels, window scrapers and jumbo bags of salt fly off the store shelves.
The sweatshirts have now been covered with heavy coats and almost everyone is sporting boots, gloves and knit hats. As you begin to wonder why you chose to live in such a cold Winter climate, the beauty arrives…the first snowfall. If you have never experienced the sight of snow falling from the sky, it is an incredibly amazing sight. I can recall sipping hot chocolate and starring out the window in awe of Mother Nature’s beauty for hours. As the snow falls, it glistens in the light and slowly flutters to the ground where it nestles with the other flakes. The brightness of the snow is blinding and everyone begins to wonder where they had placed the stylish sunglasses they purchased over the Summer.
- Children of all ages enjoy the snow
Once the ground has been covered, the children bundle up in their snowsuits and head out to play. I have many memories of making snow angles, building snow forts and, of course, being involved in numerous snowball fights. Every year we would not only make a snowman in the front yard, we would make an entire snow family complete with hats, scarves, coal eyes and a pipe (not necessarily a corn cob pipe). Snow was a time for sledding and building the highest peak in which to sled down. It was a time to dance around and catch snow flakes on your tongue. As a child, it was magical.
Although the first snow of the season is a beautiful sight, it quickly turns from beauty to beast. Once the first snow arrives, it’s common knowledge much more snow is on the way. As Winter progresses, the snow is only a welcome sight to avid skiers and the snowplow operators. Even though snow is so light and appears almost weightless as it falls, once on the ground it can wreak havoc. The roads become very slippery and the normal 20-minute commute to work can take hours. When it falls as a heavy, wet snow, it sticks to the now bare trees and power lines. Many weak branches give in to the weight and fall to the ground, as do the power lines. Some homes on the outskirts of town remain powerless for days on end. As the snowplow operators line their pockets with cash, they also line the end of your driveway with a large, ice and dirt filled barrier of snow. You will need to get out and clear it away as quickly as you can, otherwise it will turn to solid ice and become almost impenetrable.
After hours and hours of shoveling and spreading salt and sand, you head back into the house, remove all your layers of clothing and relax for a few minutes. Once your nose has defrosted, you can begin to detect the smell of a nice hot stew and fresh rolls coming from the kitchen. Winter is a time for cooking those hot, bone warming meals. The Sunday cookouts are now a time for roast beef, turkey and homemade chicken soup. Any meal, which takes hours in the kitchen, is done for two purposes; one to fill the void and rejuvenate the energy the shoveling has drained you of; and two, to warm the house with the hot oven.
- “A Christmas Story”
If you have had the opportunity to watch the movie “A Christmas Story”, no doubt you recall the scene when the boy sticks his tongue to a metal pole on a dare. This is something every child in New England has experienced in one way or another. Standing at the bus stop, attempting to warm myself in the bitter cold, I can recall pulling my jacket up to my face to block the freezing wind. On more than one occasion, the zipper of my jacket found itself frozen to my lip. The only way to remove the zipper is to lick it with your tongue and chance the very real possibility of chapped lips.
As the snow begins to melt and the temperature approaches 60 degrees, the layers of clothing begin to fade away. People who were so cold in the Fall and had to put on a sweatshirt at 70 degrees are now outside in short sleeved shirts. As the clothing is removed, others are again looking for their sunglasses. They need the sunglasses not because of the glare of the Spring sun, but for the glare of pale, sun-deprived skin now exposed.
- Catch of the year
As Spring begins to unfold, so do the buds on the flowers and trees. One doesn’t need a calendar to know it is Springtime, as the happy chirps from the birds are a clear sign of the changing of the season. Windows begin to open, parents begin to walk their infants in strollers and the neighborhood children dust of their baseballs and frisbees.
Spring in New England is like an entire new beginning. As the children ride past your home on their shiny new bicycles (some with training wheels) they received over the December holidays, Mom’s are whistling almost as loud as the birds as they hang the fresh clean laundry on the line. The whistling is for more than just saving on the electric bill, they too are ecstatic, the children are finally out of the house and burning off all the stored up energy they accumulated over the long, cold Winter.
The wild flowers begin to appear everywhere. People are stopping by the side of the road and enjoying the sight of colorful flowers growing. Some just stop and stare, some take photos to reflect upon and others actually get out of their vehicles to pick a small bouquet to bring home to a loved one. I know that sounds clique, but it is true.
- Stomping in a puddle
During the April showers, it is a common sight to see children stomping in the puddles. It is also a common sight to see the parents getting upset when the children come home soaked and muddied to the bone. As they are stripped of their wet clothes and sent to the bathtub, the parents sit back and relish in the fact that the children are finally outside playing. The thought of extra laundry quickly escapes their minds.
As the showers taper and the sun shines brighter and warmer daily, everyone has one thought on their minds…”It’s almost Summer”!
At this point, the trees and flowers are in full, beautiful bloom. The birds have chosen their homes and have begun to build nests to lay eggs. The once frozen pools, now thawed, are being uncovered and shocked. Parents have made the arrangements for Summer camp, and the procrastinators are scrambling to find suitable daytime care for their children.
As Labor Day marked the transition from Summer to Fall, Memorial Day marks the transition from Spring to Summer. Though it may not be accurate according to the calendar, when you live in New England the changing of the seasons is depicted by Mother Nature, not the date on the calendar.
The t-shirts and jeans are now replaced with tank tops and shorts. The only extra layer now being added is sun block. The pale skin, which was blinding just a few short months ago, is slowing beginning to tan and some are even pulling back the straps to show off the beginning of the “tan line”.
- Splash from a cannonball
The loss of the April showers is being tended to with sprinklers. The sprinklers now have the joyous giggles of children as they run through them. If you now take a walk down the street, you can see the swing sets being used, stray riding toys scattered about driveways, and if you are lucky enough to have a pool, you can hear the excited shrieks of the children yelling “watch out” as someone cannonballs into the pool.
It seems with every passing day the air is warmer and those who are not lucky enough to have central air conditioning are finding it difficult to find a window unit….they are completely sold out. The ones who complain the most about the brutal cold of the Winter are now the ones who complain the most about the heat of Summer.
When you are in the peak of Summer, you pray for a late night thunderstorm to cool the air, you also dread it at the same time. Since the storms only come once in a while, children and pets are easily awakened with the horrific crash of the thunder. When the thunderstorms have passed, the air is electric. There is a very distinct scent in the air and it is very difficult to describe.
Along with the late night storms, you will occasionally experience a mid-afternoon storm. These storms are eerie and exquisite at the same time. The sun could be shining above you, yet there are loud claps of thunder at the same time. You can actually be sitting on your porch without a drop of rain, yet it will be pouring buckets merely five feet away. These storms come and go as quickly as the second hand ticks on your clock. The result, an amazing rainbow which looks to go on for miles!
During the Summer, the weekends are a very cherished time. Many plans are made, from cookouts to beach parties to just relaxing with a loved one. Whatever your plans are, you can be sure every second will be a beloved memory. In New England, you don’t have very many weekends with perfect weather, so when one comes along you make it memorable.
- Summer camp friends
As the Summer months end and a new “fiscal” school year is about to begin, it can be a depressing time for some. As I mentioned earlier, children are saying their goodbyes to camp counselor and friends and parents are getting ready to buckle down on the new schedule. It’s important to reflect back and remember all of the great times you’ve had over the Summer.
All in all, I wouldn’t change a second of the time I spent growing up in Massachusetts. The changing of the seasons, although sad at times, brings a close to a section of your life as a brand new and exciting chapter opens. Every season brings excitement of what is to come, and every season gives you something new to look forward to.
