Nature's Children: Getting Ready

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August was a bittersweet time for me when I was a child. With summer winding down and school on the horizon, it was a time for getting ready, a time for change. I looked forward to school, to a new box of crayons, sharp pencils, fat pink erasers and unopened packs of notebook paper. But there were things I could do without, things like lost freedom, early bedtime, sitting inside all day and wearing shoes. I liked having new shoes, I just didn't like shopping for them. I also dreaded the yearly search for dresses that would fit my little round body. There was nothing in the stores that filled the bill, so Mama gave in and took me to her seamstress, Mrs. Kirby. I felt another precious summer day vanish as I stood in my underwear while Mrs. K measured and pinned. Once school started, I was fine. I loved school, and when I got used to wearing those darn shoes, summer became a happy memory.

Now I'm an old lady. I'm glad to put summer heat behind me, but I feel restive during these last weeks of August. I content myself with watching the world get ready for fall. My oak tree looks a bit tired. Soon it will drop fat acorns onto my skylights, sounding like artillery fire in the night. The grass has lost its springtime vibrance. Here and there weeds sprout defiantly. Along rural roadways and creeks, fall wildflowers, Black-eyed Susan, goldenrod and cardinal flower have begun to bloom. Soon they will drop their seeds in preparation for next year's blossoms. With mating season over, the frantic birdsong that echoed through my neighborhood has stopped. The birds have finished nesting. Cardinals and Carolina wrens have time to themselves now that their babies have flown. At my backyard bird feeders, the year-round residents are filling up on sunflower seeds, getting ready for cooler days. When a flock of starlings and grackles drops by, the ground is covered with black birds and the seed is gone in a flash. Summer birds are stocking up too, gaining strength for migration. Peewee, red-eyed vireo and great-crested flycatcher feast on insects and berries. Ruby-throated hummingbirds fatten up on sugar water in preparation for a long journey south. In spring and early summer the world is busy growing and mating and nurturing. By mid August, things are calmer. Everything is getting ready for winter.

Every season brings change. Winter eases into spring, a time of renewal when days get warmer. Buds open and the earth warms. Spring slides into long summer days of heat and thunderstorms, a season of growing. Summer gives way to the brilliant colors of fall and preparation for rest. Then winter, a season of quiet when wildflower seeds sleep underground and trees stand bare. I look forward to the changing seasons. I love them all. But for me, August still brings that bittersweet feeling......

the feeling that I should be getting ready for school.

Betsy Saunders

August 15, 2026