By David Carter

Some time ago, I was driving down Interstate 95 to visit my daughter for Thanksgiving. It was a bright, sunny day, and the leaves were at their peak, with all their colors blazing.

As we pulled into Orlando, I realized they don’t have seasons the same way that we do. Hot summers and moderate winters are the norm.

To me, each season is special. After a cold, hard winter, spring is always welcome with its gentle showers and mild temperatures. It is a time of renewal, a rebirth of the land and of the hearts of man. It’s our return to the outdoors. Birds are building nests and filling the land with songs.

Summer is a time of growth. After a long, hot, humid day, I enjoy watching an approaching thunderstorm bringing with it a cool breeze and the perfect recipe to grow juicy melons, sweet berries and delicious vegetables. Sunny days are the time for long walks on the beach, picnics and fishing with the grandchildren.

After the dog days of summer, the first cold front brings a refreshing change. A chill in the air makes everyone’s step a little livelier in anticipation of the big show of yellow, green, red, purple, gold and every conceivable combination of colors to excite the senses and lift our spirits. I love the wholesome smell of freshly dug peanuts and the coming harvest of corn, soybeans and cotton

Then, one by one, the leaves begin to fall, and winter is on its way. The boredom of short days and long, frigid nights is broken only by Thanksgiving and Christmas, a time of festive joy and worship with family and friends.

The winter is cold and long. The landscape is gripped by desolate and depressing colors of brown and gray. This is a quiet time of rest and reflection. While watching the crackling fireplace, one yearns for other seasons.

And then, in the morning, I slip out of bed, my feet touching the cold floor. Looking out my window, I see everything changed. The most unsightly time of year is now the most beautiful of all seasons. Bright white, fluffy snow covers everything. Every branch and twig and even the ugliest of things has become beautiful. The land is stunning, clean and pure — without a blemish.

We all have seasons in our lives. Spring, the beginning, is about birth and childhood. Summer is about becoming an adult, with marriage, family and career. Fall brings the golden years, with grandchildren and retirement.

Winter is old age, and for the Christian, it’s the most beautiful season of all — a time to see Jesus, to be with him and to be like him, to be like the snow, without spot or blemish, pure and clean.

Isaiah 1:18: Come now, let us reason together, saith the Lord: Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow.

David Carter is the owner of Brandon House Furniture store on W. Washington Street. He can be reached at BrandonHouseFurniture@verizon.net.