Ready for a questionable harvest

Field of potentially shattered dreams
Ingersoll, ON
October 2012

The colors of fall* aren't always spectacularly bright. More often than not they're subdued, and they serve to remind us, subtly, that winter is just around the corner, that an ending is fast approaching

And autumn truly is an ending, of sorts, of a time when we can simply go outside in what we're wearing without pulling on parkas, boots and mitts, when we don't need to worry about leaving enough time in the morning to dig the car - or a wayward kid - out of a snowbank.

And if you're a farmer, it's a time to bring the crops in, then hunker down for the long, cold season ahead. The fields in largely farm-dominated southern Ontario now bear the marks of a summer that was too dry. And as I blasted past the evidence on a fast-moving train, I could almost imagine seeing the farmers themselves, shaking their heads as they fired up their combines and wondered if the fields held enough to see them through the coming winter.

I sure hoped so. I'd hate to think of places like this ceasing to exist.

Your turn: Autumn is about more than just colorful leaves. What does it mean to you?

* You're still very much welcome to submit your fall color-themed pic to this week's Thematic. Just head here to get started.