Autumn

After a month of dreary rain, we are having gorgeous weather for the end of October. We have had sunshine every day for the last week, and a lot of wind, too. Though we don't have trees that shed many leaves, our neighbors on all sides do, and we seem to get the bulk of the leaves. Lucky for us, most of them came down in the last few days thanks to the wind, so we shouldn't have too much more raking to do (not that we mind raking with such beautiful weather). There is an amazing walnut tree across the street that still has quite a few leaves and seems to just glow from within. I have been savoring it's beauty all weekend.



On Friday I hosted a party for some of the students I am teaching this term. With the help of a couple of other teachers, I introduced students from China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, and Saudi Arabia (and an assistant from the United Arab Emirates) to apple cider, pumpkin bread, candy corn, and, of course, pumpkin carving. They took to the carving like fish to water. It was fun to see them experimenting with new ideas for jack-o-lanterns such as flowers for eyes and unique facial expressions.