The Darkness Slowly Falls

Summer is ending soon. It's official. I had to use the lights on my bike as I was riding home from work for the first time in a long while. Yes, I stayed at work later than normal, but there's no denying that the nights are coming sooner. They're closing in like the sides of a box, the dark slowly overcoming the light.
It's a little sad, although not as sad here in Southern California as it is in other places. I'm not going to have to be dealing with snow falling or having to bring out the winter coats, but Fall is always a strange time. It's the doorway to the beginning of the end of the year. Another year, another birthday, another presidential election, another reminder that time is just slipping away.
It's like I'm walking down a tree lined path, all of what's ahead of me looks the same, although I'm hoping there might be a few surprises I can't make out yet. Maybe there's a side path I can veer off of for a little while. I hope I'm not too enraptured looking ahead that I forget to check out what's around me. I think the texture I crave in my life lies down those side paths.