It’s the most wonderful time of the year. No, I am not writing an early Christmas article. This is all about the best season there is: fall. Though Christmas is pretty awesome, there’s nothing better than fall.

I know I am not alone in this assessment. The instant Starbucks released their pumpkin spice drinks for the season, their lines were filled with women clad in yoga pants who were eagerly listing off everything they love about fall.

I am disinclined to ever wear yoga pants. Not even calling them “compression pants,” as some male gym rats who secretly love wearing yoga pants have rebranded them, works for me. And I don’t like pumpkin spice in my coffee. Still, I fervently agree with those latte-sipping ladies. Fall has a lot to love about it.

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Though it’s not chronologically first, fall contains Halloween. Until someone becomes too old and boring to enjoy dressing up, Halloween has to remain the most fun holiday of the year. At nearly 40, I still love the excuse to dress as one of my favorite characters. 

In addition to dressing up, decorating for Halloween is so delightful it’s a miracle there isn’t a joy-tax applied to it. Carving pumpkins and making one’s own scary decor is richly fulfilling.

Beyond costumes and candy-comas, fall also contains Thanksgiving. Any day that mandates eating turkey and pumpkin pie while watching my beloved Dallas Cowboys, and remembering when they were actually good, is a great day in my book.

However, one doesn’t have to wait until Halloween and Thanksgiving to enjoy the season. There are things to celebrate about fall already. 

The miserable heat of summer is fading away. Now we can enjoy being outside on a sunny day rather than attempting to hide ourselves away from the burning heat like vampires.

Along with the temperature change comes a rich tapestry of colors woven by mother nature herself. Not even the great Bob Ross could fully capture the majesty of a mountainside covered in the vibrant colors of changing leaves. A drive over the Mesa makes me feel awestruck and inspired by the beauty of the season.

Granted, there is always bad with the good. The falling temperature keeps falling until we’re frozen to the core. The pretty leaves fall off the trees and we’re left with the skeletal resemblance of barren branches.

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As college students, we’re also faced with the semester slipping away at a faster-than-comfortable pace. Midterms are already right around the corner and I’m still trying to get into the swing of being back in school.

However, none of the less-than-awesome aspects do much to damper my delight in the season. Negative aspects can be found for any situation, but only negative people dwell on them. For fall, the good massively outweighs the bad. 

Go see the changing colors, enjoy lower temperatures, carve a pumpkin, dress up on Halloween and eat some delicious turkey on Thanksgiving; see why fall is the most wonderful time of year.