This autumn has finally come into itself– in weather, color, and activity. We have visited apple orchards, have cooked out, gone trick-or-treating, and enjoyed our fireplace. We have yet to make stew for the season but we have made soup. We have oo’d and ahh’d over the gorgeous colors and dressed cozily in our hoodies and sweaters for walks. I have burned through comforting candle after comforting candle, their flames flickering along sweetly with the twinkle lights draped over the bookshelves in our small library. Yes, it was a lovely October. So I thought it fitting to once again share some things (though many of them remain the same), namely…

Here is what I cherished this October.

1. Friday Nights — I have kept on with my firm resolve that no work will be done on Friday nights. Not by anyone in the house, yes, but especially not by me. After basic cleaning is done upon getting home, then work stops for the night. No tidying, no homework, no grading, no studying, no work emails/texts, nothing. Everything can wait until Saturday or Sunday. Fridays are for rest — for snacks and movies, shows, games, or books. Friday nights are sacrosanct. Friday nights are mine. Holding this boundary has done me a world of good over the past few years, has become something I look deeply forward to, and will continue to do me good, I am so convinced.
2. Wearing Knits and Boots – I love to dress cozily. I love my sweaters, skirts, knit ponchos, arm warmers, socks, autumnal colors, and scarves/shawls. These past few weeks have contained some days and evenings that have been lovely for all of my cozy clothes and my favorite pairs of over-the-knee boots with even taller socks. This impetus to lean into coziness has made some sweet happiness for my soul.
3. Being Ravenous to Read – I have not been able to put down my books. I crave stories and tales and worlds to escape into. One after another after another. I cannot be without a book with me, wherever I go. I have missed this obsession, this absolute need for story. I carve out time each day to sit and read or listen to an audiobook, armed with a warm cup of coffee. I cannot do without it, and I love it.
4. Open Windows – There have been several days that were just cool enough to open up the windows and doors in the house. The cat sniffs eagerly and interestedly at outside through the open screens as I let the fresh air billow through the house, chasing open window to open door. Letting it refill the lungs of my home within and accenting it with the sound of leaves rustling or rain pattering on the world without.
5. The Glow of Flame – Whether it is my candles, our fireplace, a cozy scene on YouTube, or our firebowl on the deck, I love the comforting glow of flame. In it, there is a tug back into days gone by, days before “hustle” became the watchword of our society. Nights of quiet conversations, drifting imaginations, and gently-working hands. For me, flame draws me to calmness, to burn slowly, take my time, and consume what I need in order to glow.

Once again, I don’t have any profound lessons that I have learned this month or secrets to impart, really. All I have is what I have enjoyed and how it has filled my soul. From the quiet everyday to a brand-new adventure that we experienced as a family during Fall Break, and I’m realizing that the soul-filling was happening even more than I realized at the time. I am really, really thankful for that. As we have slipped from October into November, moving from Spooky Season to that of Gratitude and Thanksgiving, I hope that we can keep an eye out for the things we cherish, for those things that make us glow, even if the flame is small. The sun is still there, after all, even if it is watery and weak behind the clouds. It’s still there.

And so are we, Friendly Readers. We are still here. May this autumn continue to stretch and those moments of slowing down, cozying up, and feeding our glow continue.