When I begin to see Orion in the November night sky, I begin to really feel that it is autumn. It marks the time to prepare for the onrush of winter by bringing snow shovels out from the shed and mentally shifting to a state of mind that can contend with less daylight, dead plants, and falling temperatures. This astronomical recognition began for me in 2003. I was single and unemployed that fall and did a lot of housesitting for a friend whose job was taking him out of town on a regular basis.
That autumn had a real cloud over it. It was the year that Johnny Cash and Warren Zevon died within less than a week of each other and their deaths seemed to emphasize my own personal struggles. Leaves began to turn and fall, the days grew cooler, and the world just seemed intent to cast a pall over my life. My friend's house was in rural Edgerton so I had a nice view of the skies.
I don't recall how it was that I began to take notice of Orion but I did. In his own way, he kept me company on many a long, lonely night. A familiar pattern in the sky that lent itself to contemplation. I'm thankful that over the years the sight of those stars has changed from a sullen occasion to a more joyful one. Seeing Orion in the November night sky brings back happy memories of my brother who studied to be an astronomer at one time and makes me look forward to the snow that will be falling soon enough.
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