Goodbye and Hello

Something I have learned in my two years of living in Upstate New York is that summer comes late--- that is when it bothers to appear at all. It seems that summer has barely finished introducing itself when autumn makes its appearance, in glorious fashion no doubt, in beautiful shades of gold, orange and red. Autumn is beautiful, yes. However, I long for a longer embrace from summer, to linger awhile, lazily soaking in its intoxication. Alas, it is not to be.
Here are the early autumn showings around our home:

The colors have slowly been appearing over the past few weeks. The hay fields are mowed and, thankfully, still a vibrant green. Most of the corn has been harvested leaving behind only inches of dry stalk that appear as a sea of tan from a distance.  Yes, summer is saying “goodbye” and autumn is saying “hello”. 
Goodbye, summer. I will keep you in my heart, longing for you until you appear again. May your friend, autumn, be bold in your place keeping the long, cold winter away as long as possible.