Ode to hoodie weather

The winds are picking up and the days are getting shorter. When you walk out the door in the morning a strange chill hits you that makes you huddle within yourself, receding from the cold air. The air smells crisper and the ground crunches at your feet. Starting on Wednesday the best season of all begins. Autumn, my friends, is finally here.

Growing up, winter was my favorite season. I loved the snow and how much brighter it made everything. As I've grown, snow has lost it's appeal. What was once seen by my doe eyes as perfection is now nothing more then a nuisance. That first fall each season still brings about wonderment, but that all changes now that the world doesn't stop for snow games.

Getting older, I appreciate fall more. It's the transition, the nuance that makes it. After sweltering heat of summer, there is nothing more welcoming then subtle winds that you feel in your bones and see in each sway of the trees.

Layering up is key in this climate and there is nothing more versatile or personal than a person's hooded sweatshirts. Hoodies are more than coats. They are extensions of ourselves. Hoodies are our protections from the elements, our pillows when the occasion arises and our blankets when we just need something to wrap ourselves in. Our hoodies identify us and we identify with them.

I still wear my first hoodie. When my family and I visited our sister at Gettysburg College it was colder than I anticipated. In the college gift shop I spotted a dark blue zipper down. Aside from the school name over the heart it was just plain blue. It's been my hoodie ever since. For six years it has kept me warm and dry. Every season when the leaves turn brown I take it out and it continues it's job of taking care of me. In turn, I take care of it. Two years ago the pocket ripped on a fence post.

I stitched it right up.

Autumn weather brings out the best in us. The transition between summer and winter is a comfortable one. Even as the last leaves fall and the wind picks up violently I still consider it the best time to be outside. I just wish that it lasted all year round.