While January is the official start of each new year, September feels more to me like the beginning of a new year or at least the start of some things - cooler weather, school, and apples. It's the eclipse of professional baseball and football seasons, the mark of the Jewish new year, and the 23rd is the birthday of jazz legend John Coltrane.
Growing up, I dreaded the beginning of this month like the rest of the kids in my neighborhood. It meant the end of the twice-daily softball games, biking to the local mall for lunch, swimming in backyard swimming pools, and changing into dark clothing for hide-and-seek after dusk. When September crept up, we colluded not to talk about how many days were left until the yellow school bus showed up. If one of us mentioned this fact, there was an expectation to cut them off or say "shut up." Labor Day weekend wasn't a holiday. It was part of the unspoken countdown of how many days I could still sleep late even though Dad wanted me to wake up earlier each day so I wouldn't be so tired on the first day of school.
Now when September approaches, I take the resolution approach. This year I'm starting this blog, wearing contact lenses again after a hiatus of more than 10 years, and focusing (again) on taking care of my health.
