Autumning, slowly

Saved by a study semester in warmer and sunnier Istanbul last year, I have not spent an autumn in the Netherlands in quite a while. As we ran out of September days, I wondered how this autumn would hit me. It is often the season I struggle with the most: rain peaks, daylight rapidly decreases, weeks without sun, and a humid cold that always comes unexpectedly. This year, I set myself the task of finding its beauty.

I have been talking to my friends, some of whom like autumn, and others who claim that autumn is more enjoyable where the winds don’t strip the trees of their dried-out leaves immediately, as in the Netherlands. A good point, I think.

“Getting out in the morning and breathing the crisp air” is something I keep hearing repeatedly. As I open the door of my house each morning on my way to the faculty, cold, clean air fills my lungs. But it is not only the seeming cleanliness; I can smell the fallen damp leaves pressed into the earth by several days of rain. They become a bit of a disgusting paste on the ground, but they make the air smell so beautifully. The snails in my garden enjoy it a lot as well – after a rain they are all outside on a passegiatta. I just wish the Dutch would not have this obsession with a clean street.

The snails in my garden enjoy it a lot as well

When it comes to finding the beauty of autumn, I think of time indoors with careful lighting and a good, warm, oven meal. At a recent dinner, my housemate and I improvised a great tray of oven-baked vegetables -including, of course, beloved potatoes. We were both very happy not only with the food but also with knowing that it was autumn to produce such a moment, with its call for warmth and its seasonal veggies. She knows that I am on a quest for autumn’s beauty, so we were both instantly complicit when appreciating our autumn-coloured meal.

This past weekend has held something special as well,  the first real autumn days. Storms and strong winds are among the most annoying situations to bike through -I am often surprised by how much they can oversteer me. Walking can be quite fun instead: playing with the wind, how much of a difference it can make for balancing or how much it can push your running. I have just come back from a day in the Meijendel (The Hague) as I write this, and I can really recommend a little autumn excursion there in the dunes and on the coast, where even the sea foam flies away.

It is difficult to decide to go outside in the cold months, but fashionably or not, I just layer up, putting on my countless cosiest layers, and go for a walk while admiring these colours and smells that are so unique in the year. So here is to changing seasons and to collectively appreciating autumn! And don’t forget your layers, as your mum probably told you. It’s true, being cold is not enjoyable.