I grew up in the suburbs of Manhattan, and Autumn was a very distinctive time of year. The green leaves would change to shades of yellow, orange, red, and brown. The weather became much cooler and I would spend weekends outside rustling in the leaves, mostly raking them up off the front lawn. There was plenty of time to play with my friends. We didn't worry about strangers, locking doors, or standardized testing. The tests were there, but no one ever talked about them. When we finished our homework, we went outside to play. On the weekends we would go to the farmer's market and have donuts, jelly apples and apple cider. It was freshly made, no processing or preservatives. Boy, things have changed. We would pick our pumpkins for carving, and take memorable photos with my family and the scarecrows in the pumpkin patch. We waited for my dad to bring pictures home from the photo shop for see what we all looked like and recall the fun we had.  There were no selfies unless you had a timer on the camera. Gratification was instant yes, but the memories are in my head and in old yellowing photos, not on Facebook, Instagram or snap chat.  When I was raising my children we made new memories of the Autumn season, and yes all this new technology was just beginning, and of course I found myself indulging in the new and exciting ways to share, and my children have their memories to share now with their children.

Yes, times have changed and maybe for the better, but let's not forgot what got us here today.

So with that being said, what are your memories of the Autumn season?

The National PTA  #ShareAwesome contest encourages youth ages 13 to 17 to capture awesome moments they experience or awesome decisions they or others make and share them on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram using #ShareAwesome  CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS!

Or just share them with your children and let's bring this season to life the way your family likes to. 

In my house, we will be celebrating the season in our own Haastyle way ....

Mindy Haas,

Florida PTA President

 The National PTA School of Excellence program is a recognition program that supports and celebrates partnerships between PTA and schools to enrich the educational experience and overall well-being for all students. Contact the Florida PTA Family & Community Engagement Committee at family.community@floridapta.org if you want to learn more about this program.