Autumn Joy???

Ahhh Autumn time ... hasn't ever really been my favorite time of year. It IS my mother's favorite time of year. Maybe that's why she and my father named me Autumn Joy. ( No, they weren't hippies, though we do have some photos of my father in some very 'groovy' pants back in the 70's. ) Let me explain my dislike of the fall season before I get into the reasons why it has recently become a more enJOYable time of year for me. Fall starts off in October ... so does the rainy season. Around here that means mud. Mud to do your chores in, mud to wipe off of your fingers so you can wipe your cold nose without getting mud on your face, mud all over every shoe you own which then gets tracked into the house... mud, mud, mud. Halloween is in the fall. The television lineup is full of spooky, scary, gory things to watch. No thank you. Trick or treating was never an enjoyable event for me, #1, we don't live in a city or town so going door to door meant driving down long gravel roads, opening gates and knocking on darkened doors of people we didn't know who weren't home. If we did make it into a proper trick or treating neighborhood and go door to door to get bags of candy ... #2, I usually couldn't eat it due to my childhood years spent in the chair of an orthodontist who fitted my mouth with many retainers, maintainers, expanders, braces and a few cemented in contraptions. ( JOY: I now have 'perfect' teeth according to my dentist!! ) #3, the typical games we played at halloween parties involved dunking your head or just mouth and nose into a bucket of water to grab apples that other people had just dunked their mouths and noses into and slobbered all over or - biting a powdered donut swinging on a string from the ceiling with your hands behind your back. Fall is also the time for Thanksgiving. I love giving thanks, I just didn't enjoy Thanksgiving. Not because my birthday usually falls on Thanksgiving day - that was enjoyable - more family present for Thanksgiving - the more presents I received for my birthday! No, the reason I didn't enjoy Thanksgiving is because it seemed like it's the one holiday where all of the foods I dislike were gathered together and served at once. Squash, Turkey, cranberry jelly, stuffing, green beans, green beans casserole ( green beans mixed into cream of mushroom soup ? Double Whammy ) pumpkin pie, pecan pie, oh the list goes on. I did like the olives, corn and mashed potatoes so that is what you'd find on plate. All of my dislike for Thanksgiving changed after I was married and we spent the holiday at my mother in law's apartment for the first time. It was then that I realized there was no rule book for the foods you had to cook for Thanksgiving! OH JOY! My mother in law served - not turkey, no,... roast beef AND ham AND fried chicken along with many traditional guamanian dishes ... pancit, kelaguen, red rice and much, much more. This was thanksgiving food I could be thankful for! Since then Thanksgiving has only gotten better. After having children my husband and I began heading over the mountains and through the woods to my brother house we'd go for the Thanksgiving weekend! He and my sister in law would open their home to the whole family and some friends and we'd have bird hunting, board game playing and when it snows ( yes they live where it snows in November ) we'd ride sleds pulled by their horses! My mom, sister in law and I make lefse and apple pies and Dad got a deep fat fryer for the turkey which makes it soooo much better! Best of all, the thing I like about fall is - it leads right into winter and we have CHRISTMAS! But that's another story.