It's Not The Same Without You...

Autumn is once again upon us here in the City of Chico. It is my FAVORITE time of the year. That perfect sunny yet crisp cold weather, leaves changing color and falling. Walking outside on a cold clear night and hearing the geese flying over head (and seeing them flying in a V) just puts a smile on my face. I have so many wonderful autumn memories here in this city. I wait anxiously every year to see the trees change to stunning colors along the tree lined Esplanade, to wander through Downtown Chico sipping some hot chocolate or a Starbucks. Moving away from Chico is going to be very tough in a lot of ways, some of the most difficult things to leave are centered around this time of year. This is a hard time of year for me in general.

Autumn was always a special time for my grandma and me. We spent every Thanksgiving week together in Chico since the time that I was 13. It was all so very special to spend all that time with her. She fractured her femur in the fall, and all the subsequent surgeries and illness happened in or near the fall. It was so odd that she passed away on Thanksgiving, a day that was always so special to us both.

I have learned to break through the hard times and again appreciate autumn here in Chico, spending time in nature and enjoying all the beauty it has to offer, listening to the geese a little longer, and soaking it all in while I can. I still have moments of unbelievable sadness, as my grandma meant the world to me, but I know that she wants me to live my life and not spend it dwelling on her death. A few weeks ago I had a moment that brought tears to my eyes. It was super lame too, but kinda funny too. I pulled a postcard out of the mailbox that had what loked like a post-it note on it. Here is a picture of the post-it portion of the postcard:



I turned the card over and it was addressed to my grandma. I literally stopped in my tracks, and tears came to my eyes. It was a postcard from State Farm Insurance commenting on the fact that my grandma was no longer their customer, but to me, it meant so much more. I guess I felt that I had to post this, as it is in the middle of the season and I am getting all sappy & nostalgic. Maybe this weekend I'll go for a stoll through the park with a hot chocolate and remember some fond memories. xoxoxo