I got the candy, and the pumpkins, and the scary ghoul costumes, we're all set for trick or treat. The garden path decorated itself in expectation of little guests. Well, technically I was too idle to clean up the fallen leaves, but I recently renewed my committed to a positive outlook on life and refuse to see it that way.
I'm trying to ignore the hibernal light, or lack thereof, that puts a chill through the bones for no other reason than a rodent inspired instinct to settle into a cozy tree hollow and stockpile nuts. Ugh, winter.
After a whirlwind of summer activities, most of which didn't yield any noticeable benefit, the normal gardening pace seems almost slow. The sun is too low, the shadows are too long and it feels a lot later, a lot closer to winter than it actually is.
The wind rouses a rusty crackle from the barren leaves and makes my heart feel unsettled under the crude October sun.
Who cares! It's almost Halloween, with Jack-o-lanterns, giggles, bowls of candy, ominous music and artificial fog. Last year's beggars' night still brings a smile to my lips, especially the image of that little Elsa from Frozen. She had a long flaxen wig that trailed behind her, twice longer than the train of her gown, and swept up the barren leaves in its wake like an oversized brush.

Author's Bio: 

Main Areas: Garden Writing; Sustainable Gardening; Homegrown Harvest
Published Books: “Terra Two”; “Generations”; "Letters to Lelia", "Door No. 8", "Fair"; "A Year and A Day"; "The Plant - A Steampunk Story"
Career Focus: Author; Consummate Gardener;
Affiliation: All Year Garden; The Weekly Gardener; Francis Rosenfeld's Blog

I started blogging in 2010, to share the joy of growing all things green and the beauty of the garden through the seasons. Two garden blogs were born this way: allyeargarden.com and theweeklygardener.com, a periodical that followed it one year later. I wanted to assemble an informal compendium of the things I learned from my grandfather, wonderful books, educational websites, and my own experience, in the hope that other people might find it useful in their own gardening practice.