The Perfect Autumn Night

Prompt: "What five images paint a perfect picture of a pleasant autumn day or night? Put those five images together in a piece of writing."

On a perfect autumn night the air would be soft and cool on my skin. I would step outside and it would wash across my face, brushing away all the worries that cloud my mind day-in and day-out. The desk would be rough beneath my feet as I approach the edge and lean up against the laticed railing, loving the way the faint breeze would blow my hair straight back from my face, tangling it with invisible fingers. Not too hot, not too cold. It tickles my nose as I descend the steps to the soft blades of grass, damp beneath my feet.

The water in the pool would shimmer so clear the bottom would be visible. Steam rises from the surface in spiraling white waves; the water is easily ninety degrees and soothing after a long day of walking, sitting, learning, talking, headaches, annoyances and research. It's the antithesis to all those things, something that makes your mind go blank and takes it over with the soft brush of water on the sides of the pool. I would sit on the steps in the shallow end, shoulders just barely submerged with my hair floating on the surface and close my eyes... relaxation.

Candles light the garden. Already some of the flowers have begun to fade away and die with the first few hard frosts, but some still linger. The morning-glories are in full bloom, royal blue and translucent beneath the flickering, burning lights. Those little candles with their little dancing flames are encased in shattered and pieced-together glass prisons, protecting the fragile greenery from the unintentionally harsh flame. Still, the red and golden glow it casts around the pitch-dark yard make me think of fireflies even though I've never seen a firefly before in my life. This is an okay substitute, though. They smell sweet and exotic.

Overhead I can see the moon. It's not quite full, but that's okay. It's a brilliant silvery disk in the sky, casting a white glow over everything and giving my mundane world shine and beauty that it didn't previously have. I wish it was always like that, so clear and beautiful at night, outshining even the brightest of stars in the sky. The moonbeams touch the surface of the water and reflect the gentle sway of the ever-moving water, refracting into ribbons of light on the floor. I can see clear to the bottom of the pool, all eight feet.

It's a shame it's so dark; I wish I could have seen the leaves of the trees in the neighborhood. I love how they turn all the vibrant shades of orange and red--especially red. Red leaves seem so glorious compared to the yellow-brown ones that litter the parkway. Nevertheless, I appreciate the darkness. The lights are off at my neighbors' houses because it's so late, but that's okay with me. The false yellow light of the indoor world pales in comparison to the moon, looking dull, like the peeling pain on my neighbor's house. The blackness is much nicer, much softer, like velvet.

It's a shame, though, that it's only going to get colder. We only had one perfect night this year. Such a shame.