"You do it to yourself, and that's what really hurts"

When I was a young kid (age 6 or so) I loved summer. The hotter the better. My friends and I would go swimming, climb trees, ride bikes, and occasionally stay out late enough to howl at the moon-- just to tell the neighborhood that we were alive. Summer was where it was at.
Later in life, (circa age 14) I loved winter. Hot chocolate, the Christmas season, the ever alluring possibility of a snow day... I loved bundling and going outside. Winter was pretty awesome.

Nowadays my favorite season is autumn. It was never glamorous to me as a kid; it's not as hot as the summer, it's not as cold as the winter, I stopped trick-or-treating before high school. But now the consistency and quietness of this time of year serves as a much needed repose from summer, and a welcome breather before the hectic holidays.
Perhaps as I'm getting older I'm coming to appreciate the understated beauty of moderate weather and the gentle slow changing colors of the leaves. It can't all be 90-degree days and snow storms. And hell, the view outside my window as I write this is far more beautiful than any indian summer I've ever seen. The grounding concept of moderation consistently permeates my life.