An ode




It's almost like you can feel it.

The sun is going down just a little sooner at night. Kids are actually reporting to football practice.

Even if it's a hundred degrees out and still plenty of weekends left to enjoy the beach, fall is very very slowly sneaking up on us.

I don't mean to steal summer dreams from anyone. I like summer, too. It's just odd that I'm already seeing hints of that back-to-school time already.

There are stores with crisply folded sweaters and school supplies on sale. Freshly sharpened pencils and evenly lined notebooks. LL Bean catalogues with hues of navy blue, hunter green.

In a little over a month, the coolness will tumble beneath our ears in the morning like a barely perceptible whisper. We'll hear the buses starting and stopping outside, and we'll know nervous freshmen are heading that way.

It's always been the time to start again, to sit behind a desk and hope that each of our new teachers has a sense of humor, hope we're assigned in at least one class to sit next to that cute boy/girl we've been dreaming about for ages. This is the year we finally wise up enough to figure out how to get their attention.

Does this entry seem too wistful? Or is there a way to spin this feeling around and still look at every autumn day as new and colorful as the leaves?


Update:

I forgot that I have three sportswriters reading this blog (believe it or not). The female one writes:

> Kids better not be reporting to official, formal football practice yet. I believe the first day allowed by the NJSIAA is Aug. 21. These are just captains' practices, which "don't count." Except kids who don't show up likely won't be startin' in the fall!