The ‘nip’ caught me by surprise this year. But it’s there, just like our life’s seasons | Opinion
The other morning, just after my daily meditation and prayer, I walked out on my front porch and there was a soft breeze sweeping gently over my plants, causing them to sway gently. I sat down and listened to the birds chirping in a nearby tree. A butterfly floated by and I followed its flight pattern as its orange-and-black wings took it across the street and out of sight. A pleasant morning.
Sitting there, I was overwhelmed with a feeling of peace and thankfulness. Then it hit me: The “Nip” had arrived! I smiled to myself. Another year had slipped by, just like that. And with its passing, I am blessed to be here to witness the arrival of a new season.
Having lived in South Florida nearly all my life, I have grown used to the green trees and brightly flowering plants. We here in South Florida are still planting new shrubbery, while people in many other states are raking up mounds of colorful leaves. Some are already stacking up wood piles for the coming winter months. Their nip arrives a lot earlier than ours.
About this time of the year, I usually start looking for that certain feel in the air. It is the time of the year, to me, when there is a noticeable dip in our South Florida weather. The change is so subtle that most people don’t even notice it.
In fact, many of my Northern friends laugh at me when I tell them there is a “nip in the air.” They laugh because they are still going beaching (when it isn’t raining), while the national newscasters have already started wearing overcoats when they greet the people around Rockefeller Center in New York.
Yet, while our thermostats don’t show a slight drop in the temperature, I know in my heart that there has been a change in the weather. Not a big change, but a change, nonetheless.
There is just something about the atmosphere, and the way I feel when the nip arrives. I must admit, though, the nip’s arrival almost slipped up on me his year. That’s because a large part of our state was beaten and battered by two major hurricanes. I was so concerned about the victims of these natural disasters, that I almost forgot to watch for the nip. So, I was caught off guard that morning on my porch.
It’s funny how the seasons change without making any noise at all. When it’s time for a change, the seasons — they just show up. And there is nothing we can do about it.
Life is that way. I remember the day when I stopped wanting to play “dolly house” with my childhood friends. I remember the day like it was yesterday, when I stood next to the coconut tree in the yard of the house where we lived at 135 NW Ninth St. in Overtown.
I was nearly 10, and I could feel the new changes in my body, as well as in my attitude. The new feeling just slipped up on me and I didn’t understand what was happening. One day I was a little girl, eager to play dolly house with my friends. The next day, everything seemed different.
Suddenly, playing dolly house (where my friends and I would find bits and pieces of junk to “build” a doll house) wasn’t so important. Up till then, my friends and I always tried to outdo each other.
But on that day, a feeling I didn’t understand washed over me. Building the prettiest dolly house didn’t seem fun anymore. The change had slipped up on me — just as the nip does every year.
Without warning, a change had come over me. In my mind, the little girl joy had slipped away. Sadly, it was a season of change for me. Unlike the nip that shows up every year, I knew that the 9 1/2-year-old Beatrice would never come back.
It was both an exciting and a sad time for me. I was no longer a little girl; I was on the brink of becoming a double-digit preteen.
As I look back, there were other seasons that sort of slipped up on me — my becoming a teenager and dating; high school graduation; and later, getting married and becoming a mother. And a young widow. These are natural life changes. Yet, like the nip in the air does at times, we often are caught off guard when they show up.
The nip in the air changes the atmosphere and represents a new season. These life milestones also represent the seasons of our lives.
I am thankful for every season of my life. I have learned much from every season I have been blessed to experience. I want my living to reflect what I have learned.
This year’s nip finds me a year older. I am also wiser. My seasons have taught me to be more tolerant, more loving and more compassionate.
So, as I muse on the change in the weather and the changes in my life, just as the nip brings us into a new season and an opportunity to clear out last summer’s junk, I will take this latest season of my own life to be a kinder and better me.
