My love for autumn

Autumn on the Blue Ridge Parkway (Yep...I left that for TX!)

It's absolutely no secret that I love autumn. It's my favorite season for so many reasons. I love the scents, the flavors, the sights, the weather, the clothes, even the name. Autumn...it sounds so refreshing!

Just a few of the things I love about autumn...some of them covered in more detail in previous posts.

-Football - the Carolina Panthers and the McKinney Youth Football League's 5th grade version of the New Orleans Saints.

-The colors. Orange (see previous post for more details on this obsession) and green are everywhere. In nature, in fashion, you name it.

-The foods. My mom grew up in Adams County, PA, the heart of apple country and passed on a great love for all things apple. Among the best...apple dumplings filled with tons of cinnamon sugar and butter and topped with a generous scoop of Blue Bell (that's the Texan in me!) vanilla bean ice cream.

-New episodes of Grey's Anatomy and The Office.

-The clothes. Sweaters, great jeans, boots...what's not to love? And have you seen the velvet blazers at J. Crew? I'm in love.

-Cool breezes. Granted, these are not usually felt in TX in early September, but I'm holding onto hope.

Crescendo

Sarah responded to my last post with this comment, which reminded me of a scrapbook page I did a few months ago.

I have three or four scrapbooks going at any given time. Most of them I'll readily share and even force people to read, but there's one that is much like a journal. I usually hold that one a little closer and share it with very few. But I'm making an exception here. So...here's the text of the journaling seen on the page above.

"A tremendous musical crescendo never fails to elicit an emotional response from me. Consider the magnificent finale to the 1812 Overture, accented by an equally magnificent fireworks display. My favorite example, though, is Stonebriar's arrangement of 'A Mighty Fortress'. On the third verse, the orchestra slows on the last line, leading into a breathtaking bridge, which swells as it nears the fourth verse. The kettle drums sound and the congregation joins in with 'That word, above all earthly powers...'. And without fail, my eyes fill with tears and a lump forms in my throat."

'A Mighty Fortress' has been my favorite hymn for many years, not only because of the incredible musical possibilities it presents, but also for its profound lyrics, so rich in sound, strong theology. How can I fail to be moved by this - "The Spirit and the gifts are ours, through Him who with us sideth. Doth ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He. Lord Sabaoth His name, from age to age the same. And He must win the battle!" - especially when it is sung to a full orchestra?