The lesson of fall
F
all unfolds. The quilt on the bed. The windows up at night. Morning air biting at your feet as you rise. Remember summer? In stiffly conditioned air we would aim our plans at the world. Grabbing our car keys, confident, we punched our way outside, only to have heavy, airless August suffocate our joys before the storm door could whack behind us. Fall is why we all stay in Arkansas. Yes, it’s among the prettiest places in the country for the season, but let’s face it, if summer lasted another month, we would all go mad. If it weren’t for October, no pioneers would’ve ever stopped here. I can only imagine that there was a time in the late 19th century in Arkansas when the land was littered with half-houses. Hapless nomads settling the land in spring, then finally giving up sometime in late summer, muttering, “It’s just too damn hot here,” and heading north, or east, or west. Arkansans are a durable people and October is the reward for the stout-hearted who stayed. The tops of trees start changing, the smell of the cinders burn and we look around for that bold soul with the first smoking chimney. Whether it’s on a porch swing, or just standing in the yard, we all have our fall moment. The world exhales. We nuzzle in. But more than that, there is something vulnerable about fall. There is need there. Each year is an aging man. If spring is when nature enlivens us, and summer is when he
shows his power, fall is when he darkens and cracks. Shorter days. Longer shadows. Spring is for dreamGRAHAM ing. Fall is for setGORDY grahamgordy@gmail.com tling in, for reflection, for regrets. And maybe that’s why we appreciate fall so much. For the relief from the oppressively hot, yes, but also for the stillness. For the perspective. Our minds quiet, our grasp meets our reach, and our year matures. There are certainly more benign climates, but nobody ever learns much in paradise. People spread out in the warmth. They stand alone, radiating heat. But here, our state gives us a gift each year. We get our heads about us. We step off the bucking bronco and we look back. Boy, we were a mess in the spring. We realize that now. We’ll be better from here on. When you’re 23, you’re dumb enough to be confident. The older you get, the more aware you become that you’re an emotional shambles. There’s a lesson in the seasons changing. There’s comfort in the vulnerability of fall. We relate to it because we’re broken too. Because not only are we not invincible; we’re not even secure. Because we need each other. A bitter wind comes in, and the lesson comes. Reach out for each other and prepare for what’s next.
PhiliP Mann Music Director
www.arkansassymphony.org 501-666-1761 Tickets start at $14. Student tickets $10. Kids K-12th grade free on Sunday using the Entergy Kids Ticket.
SHOP ‘N’ SIP
Thurs, Oct 6 Shop ’til 8 and dine till late!
CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL SWING BAND REUNION
PLAYING AT THE CORNER OF KAVANAUGH AND BEECHWOOD
AFTER DARK, CONT. payment. Burns Park, 11 a.m. 2700 Willow St., NLR. 501-753-4594. Arkansas Farmers Market. Locally grown produce. Certified Farmers Market, 7 a.m.-12 p.m. 6th and Main, NLR. Falun Gong meditation. Allsopp Park, 9 a.m., free. Cantrell & Cedar Hill Roads. Farmer’s Market. Every Tuesday and Saturday. River Market Pavilions, through Oct. 31: 7 a.m. 400 President Clinton Ave. 375-2552. www. rivermarket.info. “Garden Gourmet” Chef Series. Celebrating sustainable food and culinary traditions, the series features Little Rock chefs demonstrating their use of fresh, local ingredients. River Market Pavilions, through : second Saturday of every month, 9 a.m. 400 President Clinton Ave. 375-2552. www.rivermarket.info. Good Gardens presents Jennifer Gibson. Gibson will discuss landscape design and problem solving. Laman Library, 10 a.m. 2801 Orange St., NLR. 501-758-1720. www.lamanlibrary.org. Harvest at Wildwood Park. Includes hayrides, arts and crafts, vendors, live music and the Arkansas Pickin’ & Fiddlin’ Championship. Wildwood Park for the Performing Arts, Oct. 8, 10 a.m.; Oct. 9, 12 p.m., $6-$26. 20919 Denny Road.
Helena Second Saturdays. Enjoy art and live music along Cherry Street. Cherry Street, through Nov. 12: second Saturday of every month, 5 p.m. 223 Cherry St., Helena. Hillcrest Farmers Market. Pulaski Heights Baptist Church, 7 a.m. 2200 Kavanaugh Blvd. Hot Water Hills Music & Arts Festival. See Oct. 7. International Observe the Moon Night. Telescope viewings of the moon, with Darrell Heath and Tony Hall. Riverfront Park, 7 p.m., free. 400 President Clinton Avenue. Littlerocktoberfest. Bratwurst dinner, beer and raffle to win a New Belgium Fat Tire bicycle. Dickey-Stephens Park, 6 p.m., $25. 400 W. Broadway St., NLR. 501-664-1555. www.travs. com. Solar System Walk. Dr. Tony Hall gives participants a true idea of the scale of the solar system by scaling it down to a one mile stretch. Riverfront Park, 5 p.m., free. 400 President Clinton Avenue. Urban Farming Festival. Sample the wares of local farmers, learn gardening techniques and enjoy arts and crafts, games, live music and free bike tune-ups. Faulkner County Library, 1 p.m. 1900 Tyler St., Conway. 501-327-7482. www.fcl.org. CONTINUED ON PAGE 28
www.arktimes.com OCTOBER 5, 2011 27