I am missing the sound of crickets, though. Thus far, the night has been utterly bereft of their pleasant chirps. It must be too cold for them. Perhaps one or two of them will come into the house and sing for me, once the heater goes on. I do hear the dog who lives at the house on the corner barking now and then, and a car or two passes, every few minutes. But aside from this, early night is blessed serenity, the kids gone in from play, the doors and windows closed on the blare of television sets.
A moment ago, I caught a whiff of pungent wood smoke- not from a summer brush fire, but wafted here from some stove or fireplace that now cheers a chilly room of a nearby house. I have a cup of hot tea. All that is needed to complete the atmosphere of an early autumn night is the aroma of apples or pumpkin being baked into a pie. Mmm, pie. Mmm, autumn.
