With its welcome drop in temperatures and crisp blue skies, October officially announces, at least for me, that fall has truly arrived.

Traditionally, I think of September as the beginning of the fall season; however, Mother Nature tends to like playing tricks in September these days, slipping warmer weather back in when, perhaps, you least expect it. Alabama weather is a bit fickle that way.

Every October, I think about my grandfather, Howard Camp, and the poem he loved so well, and that we enjoyed together – “October’s Bright Blue Weather” by Helen Hunt Jackson. He got me to memorize it when I was much younger and enjoyed having me recite it.

It’s always had a special appeal, and we were always both happy to see the month return.

Are you looking forward to the special blue skies October brings? Perhaps you are eagerly anticipating the changing and the falling of the leaves and hearing them crunch underfoot as you walk along enjoying a lovely fall afternoon. I know I am.

Perhaps the sentiment is summed up best in Ms. Jackson’s poem. You can get a sense of it in the brief excerpt below, but I suggest looking the poem up and reading it in its entirety.

“O suns and skies and clouds of June,
And flowers of June together,
Ye cannot rival for one hour
October’s bright blue weather.”