The Smell of Fall, The Taste of Mercy

FALL IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER!!! I smell it!  I feel it!  I can taste it! 

 

There’s something about this time of year that feels like a big exhale! The air is cooler, the leaves crunch underfoot, and my favorite cowl-neck sweaters finally get to come out of hiding! 

It’s like life itself slows down just enough to whisper, “Pause, breathe, enjoy.” 

For me, autumn always means two things: soup season and sweater weather. Every weekend, I find myself in the kitchen stirring a new pot of something warm and hearty. Sometimes it’s a tried-and-true family favorite, other times it’s a brand new recipe that my crew waits for in anticipation. 

There’s just something about soup that feels like love in a bowl!

And then there are the evenings. The crisp woods calling for a walk, leaves crunching beneath my feet like nature’s applause. Or a campfire with flames dancing against the night sky, laughter rising with the smoke, and the warmth of both fire and fellowship wrapped around me like another layer of comfort. Have you noticed that it smells SO much better in the fall?  

Some might wonder how I can still love this season. After all, it was in the fall that Levi passed. By all accounts, you’d think this time of year would only bring heartache, that I’d avoid the reminders altogether. And while it is bittersweet, I still hold this season close. Not only because it was his favorite time of year too, but because now it has become a symbol of growth and God’s great mercies in my life. 

Every crunch of the leaves reminds me that even in change, God’s hand is unchanging and full of love and triumph. Every fire sparks the truth that warmth can still be found on the coldest nights. Every bowl of soup shared with my family is proof that love still fills the empty spaces. 

So yes, it’s sweater weather and soup season. But even more, it’s a reminder that the God who carries me through the hardest losses also fills my days with new warmth, new memories, and new mercies — right here in the very season that tried to take my joy.