By Becky Holland
COCHRAN — Fall officially arrives today, Tuesday, Sept. 22, marking the beginning of a new season — even if Middle Georgia temperatures don’t immediately get the message.
The autumnal equinox marks the astronomical beginning of fall in the Northern Hemisphere. It occurs when the sun crosses the celestial equator, bringing day and night to roughly equal lengths. From this point forward, daylight hours will continue to grow shorter until the winter solstice in December.
In Bleckley County, however, the arrival of fall is about much more than what happens in the sky.
It means football under the Friday night lights, fall festivals, pumpkins, scarecrows and community events. It means mornings that eventually become a little cooler and evenings that make sitting outside a little more inviting.
And while residents may be ready to pull out sweaters and jackets, Georgia weather often has other plans.
September can still bring plenty of warm — and sometimes downright hot — afternoons to Middle Georgia. The noticeable change to cooler weather generally comes gradually rather than arriving with the official start of the season.
Signs of fall are already beginning to appear around Cochran and Bleckley County.
Downtown Cochran is preparing for its annual Scarecrow Contest, which will bring fall decorations to the downtown area. Greene Acres Farm is also preparing for its Fall Frenzy on the Farm, scheduled to begin Sept. 26 and continue through Nov. 1.
Local sports calendars are busy as well. Football, softball, cross country and competition cheer are among the activities keeping Bleckley County students and families on the go as September turns toward October.
Fall also brings some of the simplest seasonal traditions: porches decorated with pumpkins, the first pot of chili on a cool evening, seasonal treats, changing leaves and perhaps that first morning when stepping outside finally feels different.
The brilliant fall color associated with North Georgia’s mountains generally isn’t quite as dramatic in Middle Georgia, and it tends to arrive later. Still, the changing leaves of oaks, maples and other trees eventually provide their own reminder that another season is passing.
So today may arrive without sweater weather. The afternoon may still feel suspiciously like summer.
But according to the calendar — and the movement of the Earth around the sun — fall has arrived.
And here in Bleckley County, there are plenty of signs that a new season is getting underway.
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