Equinoctial

· life ·

I like the equinoxes. Winter and summer I can take or leave (though I'm fond of bright, cold, crisp winter days and cool but sunny summer days), but I love spring and autumn. After the literal washout of a summer that we experienced this year, the autumn is proving to be a real gem. The autumn foliage colours have been stunning, and have been shown off at their best by the bright, low sun. Riding to work has been a joy. In the morning, I've passed through veils of low-lying mist, just caressing the ground and the river, making even the football pitch look romantic -- quite an achievement in my opinion. In the evening, the low sun has set fire to the leaves at the red end of the spectrum, turning them into glowing jewels on a backdrop of emerald green. One tree had dropped many of its leaves on the ground, and they were such a bright yellow that from a distance I thought there was a pool of sunlight under the tree. I was so impressed that I wrote a bad Twitter haiku about it.

Crowning the magical feel of the past few weeks, I saw the electric blue flash of a kingfisher on Friday -- an amazing but improbable sight on an urban, rubbish strewn stream. I'm going to try to make the most of this amazing season while it lasts, and before the nights start closing in.