Weather?

This has been a beautiful fall. I say this in spite of having lived in New England and upstate New York. Fall was a super season of beauty. I recall the surge of tourists from New York City to our Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. Traffic everywhere, mostly “peepers” of fall foliage. Some tourists came from New York State and Boston. But mostly they were from the Big Apple, hungering for country lanes and hills filled with colored leaves.

Same here this year. Maybe not the hills, but the foliage has been stupendous. As has the rest of the year, in my opinion.

2025 may be a year of tremendous political upset and anger, but the weather has been superb. Each and every season. Winter was mild; oh yes, we had a few cold snaps, but not a lot, and certainly snow was not up to its usual depths. Spring came early, warm snaps followed by cooling, then more warmth and blooming trees and shrubs everywhere. Summer was warm, hot, but there were a lot of blue-sky days. Storms were few and far between and long stretches of rain just didn’t happen. And now Fall.

I also lived in Syracuse, New York. Average annual snowfalls are 125 inches or more. One of the most in the nation. The full four seasons were distinct and beautiful as well, but boy, those winters were arduous. Rolling hills and wide landscapes including the Finger Lakes region, were beautiful. Still are. Fall color is an annual visitor as much as the winter’s snow.

Here in flatland Illinois, we have some undulating farmland and minor hilliness. Trees still grow here and their Fall color graces our landscape as well. We are not bereft of natural beauty. It is, however, much more in the eastern states of the USA. If you have the chance, drive to New England and experience the Fall for yourself. It is stunning and life affirming.

We need this each year to celebrate the growing season behind us and the cold, harsh winter entering our stage soon.

2025 is a year to remember its seasonal shifts. Glorious. Beautiful. Affirming.

November 10, 2025

 

 

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