Packing up for Winter

You know through my posts that one of my favorite hangouts is my back deck. It has provided me with hours of quiet and calm in a pretty setting where I can enjoy the sounds and sights of nature, without going to far from home. Even despite its reputation for not being pretty in color.

Now that cooler weather has set in, my time out there has diminished and I have begun to pack away chairs, umbrellas (I do not hide from the warmth of the sun this time of year), and tables. There will be one table, and a set of chairs left behind to sit out and enjoy those scattered dog days of summer that somehow find us this time of year. I grab every opportunity to sit out there.

The planters have begun to disappear from the back that held summer flowers, and have been replaced by pots of mums, adding a wee bit of color to the back yard and deck and patio area. My hummingbird feeders have been emptied and washed and put away until spring. The bird houses remain for the occasional bird who might wish to hide from the winter drafts.

There's a certain sadness that comes with fall, and I feel it when I am out on my almost empty deck. But I will enjoy what time I have left out here, despite the drop in temps and the shorter days, and will continue to enjoy each moment of peace and solitude I found there. Even in the dead of winter, my deck and yard offer me a place to step out onto to enjoy the wonders of mother nature. And that is always good.