Student Activities Blogs

Meg Carley

A Personal Favorite

It’s that time of year. The leaves are changing, store shelves have been stocked with Halloween candy, and the baseball playoffs are in full force. I can say without reservation that fall is my favorite season mainly because I have a tendency to always wear orange and that actually seems to work towards my benefit. Another thing I’ve noticed about fall is that everyone seems to be in good spirits compared to the other seasons. In the winter, people get grumpy because it’s cold, damp and it seems to be dark out all the time. Then spring comes and of course it rains like there’s no tomorrow and you start to realize that the end of the school year is on the horizon which is always depressing. Once spring is over we get hit with summer where we have to start working a 9-5 job and begin to sweat all the time because our friend humidity appears once again. One could call this a vicious cycle but I think that’s a little harsh. Every season has its ups and downs which we all learn to accept. It just seems that fall has more positives than negatives what with Halloween, the beginning of a new school year, Thanksgiving (mmm….Thanksgiving) and especially for this year, elections. Of course all of these things would put a person in good moods which is why fall is certainly my favorite time of year.

Today my friends and I went apple picking and at risk of sounding cheesy, it was quite joyous. The weather was gorgeous and I got to taste a various amount of exotic apples (one could take this opportunity to become an apple connoisseur but I think I’ll pass). The orchard we went to had apples of all different varieties. Some apples looked questionably large but I won’t judge. I’m also not sure if it was kosher of me to pick various apples, try them and then throw them on the ground but c’est la vie (throwback to the famed B*Witched song). Needless to say, apple picking is an activity I can only do during the fall which is another reason why fall is just so amazing.

The alternative break trip I’m leading to New York City takes off in a few weeks which makes fall that much more exciting. I’ll be leading a trip of 11 students with my co-trip director Alex and a staff member. I’m excited and nervous all at once considering I would like everything to go to plan but in the back of my mind I know that probably won’t happen. As a trip director you have to know that you’re going to make mistakes and you won’t follow the schedule exactly but that’s what makes it such an important learning experience. You learn to be flexible and open to changes. Having your trip not going exactly to plan usually makes a better reflection opportunity for me and my volunteers as well.

I hope that this time of year is enjoyable for all and everyone’s taking in the picturesque fall foliage because it will be over too soon. Winter will soon start to creep in but at least you’ll have memories of the fall and be able to look forward to future fall seasons. So for now enjoy and soak it all in because autumn is in one word, awesome (yes, I used the word awesome…don’t judge).