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Autumn smells comfortable

October and November used to be my favorite months as far as aromas go. I guess they still are.
The smells that come from places like the kitchen, the back yard and the woods remind me of a less stressful time, a time when all I had to do was watch Howdy Doody, worry about picking up my toys and setting the table for mom.
One of the first comfortable smells comes from the autumn leaves as they gather on the ground all crunchy and colorful. Itís a warm aroma that announces the end of summer and beginning of a very long season of cold and gray. For a brief period life is all red and gold, lusty with scents of the earth. Even after a cool autumn shower, with the layered leaves glistening in the harvest moonlight, the smell is never repugnant.
As a kid I remember the tiny plumes of smoke that curled up in the sky above the homes in my St. Paul neighborhood as folks set afire piles of dried oak and elm fronds. Like kittens nestled before a fireplace, the little clouds snuggled into the autumn skyline turning ghostly until they disappeared into the heavens taking their wispy fragrance with them. I know we shouldnít burn leaves any more, but it still is a serene memory of my youth.
Another pleasant aroma comes from the burnt lid of the
Halloween pumpkin. Really. This year I substituted a ceramic jack-o-lantern and it just wasnít the same. The scorched pumpkin lid too has an easy aroma that says slow down and enjoy life.
With a chill in the air, November apologizes for making us
shiver by producing delicious scents of baking squash and pumpkin pies, and turkeys roasting in the oven, that warm our hearts as well as our kitchens.
Other aromas fill our homes, like bayberry from candles on the mantle and cinnamon from sticks in hot apple cider. The last of the chrysanthemums, stalwart in clay vases, have distinct aromas of their own that say good-bye to a pleasant season of warmth and laughter.
Wildflowers, gathered and displayed, offer another fragrance to the seasonís menu and drying herbs in the side porch create a
heavenly welcome for those who enter on a fall afternoon. And I canít forget the pine cone that emits a fresh forest fragrance as it sputters and spits in the fireplace as folks gather around the hearth.
Soon, very soon, the holidays will be upon us, with their own tingling aromas to brighten our world. Still, the winter holiday scents canít compare to the earthy aromas of autumn, those smells that bring back memories of a happy childhood and help me feel comfortable in this stressful world.

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