I woke up one morning and felt my body frigid cold. The winter had set in. Autumn and all its joy had passed, its image still vivid in my mind; the view of golden-red leaves on the ground, the aroma of cinnamon wafting through the air, and people walking the streets with pumpkin-spiced lattes in their hands. I never quite understood the fanfare around those lattes. Autumn always makes me happy. It signifies new beginnings, the shedding of our old selves and opportunities to reinvent ourselves with the New Year just a few months away. The weather is perfect too. It’s cold enough to make you wear a cardigan but not so much to make you disappear under a pile of blankets and fleece jackets. Autumn is the calm before the storm.
I forced myself out of bed and freshened up. I headed to the kitchen and made myself a hot cup of coffee. I dreaded looking out of the window because I knew all I would see was empty streets and a gloomy darkness. Still, I walked to the windowsill and opened the curtains. It was an eerie atmosphere outside. Not a soul was visible in sight, all were taking refuge inside the warmth of their homes. I felt like I was living in a city that had been deserted decades ago. It was extremely quiet and lonely. There was no wind, it was still. The sun was not visible above the many layers of clouds. The smell of moist ground was in the air, a thin sheet of ice had formed on the streets. Despite it being hauntingly desolate, there was a peace to the nature outside. It was as if the earth had stopped revolving; even time needed to take a break from going by so fast.
Nature always manages to have a beauty to it. You would think the tenebrosity outside my window foreshadows the arrival of The Grim Reaper, but even the eeriness somehow comforts my heart. The trees may look bare, but the mesmerizing pattern of their branches is only seen once a year. The streets may be empty, but people understand the value of silence only once a year. It may be too cold but living beings appreciate the warmth you get from your loved one only once a year.
I think this is why the natural ecosystem of the earth was put in place. It forces people to change the normal course of their lives so that they can appreciate the other things in their surroundings, even if it is only once a year. Silence can only be loved when cars cease their usual honking and people stop their nonsense chatter. Naked trees can only be noticed when they lose their leaves in autumn, thus, reinventing themselves. Literal and figurative warmth can only be felt when the temperature drops and the fog sets in. People snuggle up close to the fire and their lover to keep out the winter.
I may be alone, but I have faith that I will find someone and that is my warmth. Till then, it’s just me, my (now cold) coffee, and my jacket.
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