Pumpkin Spice Nationalism - In Defense of Seasonal Joy

[Originally published and used here with permission by Jonathan Hansen]

“While the earth remains,

Seedtime and harvest,

Cold and heat,

Winter and summer,

And day and night

Shall not cease.” (Genesis 8:22, NKJV)

The world God made is one of seasons. We have the day and night cycle. We have the monthly cycle of the moon. We have seasons that change throughout the year. This used to be commonly understood by all men everywhere. But one of the changes brought on by modernity is the blending of these cycles.

Think about it. With the invention of the the electric light bulb everything changed. No longer was man bound by the rhythm of the sun. We could be awake at any hour. We could work around the clock. Now certainly I am not lamenting the invention of the light bulb. It is truly one of the greatest inventions in history. It has revolutionized life in countless ways. One of my favorites is being able to sit under a warm lamp and read after the kids go to bed. Truly wonderful. But even with the greatness of this invention, there have been some negative side effects.

The same is true with other innovations. Think of the massive advances in agriculture. These have been life changing for the better. For most of human history one of the pivotal questions was where would the next meal come from? Will we have enough food to survive the winter? One of the signs of wealth was not having to worry about these basic things. This was why the wealthiest civilizations tended to produce most art. They had time to actually dedicate to things beyond basic survival. And I for one am certainly happy with this new reality. 

I was marveling the other day thinking about how I have never been in a grocery store and not seen strawberries. Do you ever think about how incredible that is? We can now have strawberries year round. What was once reserved for a summer delicacy has become a year round staple. There are benefits to this for sure. In January, when the craving for strawberries and ice cream (a wonderful dessert) hits, it is simply a Walmart trip away. But I cannot help thinking that this has made some changes to our thinking.

Strawberries used to be something looked forward to. “I can’t wait for summer when our bushes start producing fruit” has been replaced by a short car drive whenever the craving hits us. We have become disconnected from the seasons and the yearning they should instill. It is a good thing to look back at previous blessings. It is a good thing to look ahead to future blessings yet to come. This is one of the things that keeping a garden will teach you. It inherently links you back with the seasons. You plant the seed. You see the plant sprout and begin to grow. You protect it from vermin (death to gophers). You see the blooms. You see the first fruit begin to take shape. And finally you get to taste of the fruit of your labor, and more importantly, God’s grace.

Our world, in contrast to this, has become one of instant gratification. I don’t have to plant a garden. I can just drive to the store and get whatever fruit I want, in season or out. I want it now. I have it right now. That is one of the defining traits of modernity. Instant gratification. It’s a feature, not a bug. Now. Now. Now. And I think this has left many people feeling a sense of loss. We are surrounded by more than at any other time in human history and yet, talk to people, and they feel less connected to reality than ever. Why? Well, there are many reasons, but one of them must be the loss of connection to the seasons.

God made the world to have winter, spring, summer, fall. Winter the time of cold and death, but also of warmth in the fireplace. Of hot coco, peppermint, cranberry wine, and of course Christmas. Spring, the season of resurrection, planting, new life, and of course Easter. Summer, the time of growth and flourishing, of fishing trips and camping. Autumn, the season of fulfillment and harvest, of pumpkin spice late’s and apple picking, of gathering and reaping that which was sown. When these are blurred, there is a true loss of something deep. When spring becomes autumn, we have lost the longing for autumn. When summer becomes winter (looking at you “Christmas in July”), you loose something major. 

To everything there is a season. And when we operate within those seasons we find longing and joyful contentment. When I long for warmth in the middle of the blizzard, I find myself much more joyful when the warmth comes. When I long for the crisp air and beautiful smells of fall I find myself much more content when the leaves begin to change. I long for the joys of tomorrow and yesterday, and in the process, I find myself more contentedly joyful in the moment.

Sadly, however, when you can simply skip ahead to the next season without any waiting, it reduces the longing and the contentment. To illustrate this, think of how many people just jump ahead to the next holiday. As soon as Halloween ends, it’s Christmas. Never mind that they are almost two months apart. We can instantly get to it. Forget All Saints Day. Forget Thanksgiving. Forget Advent. At midnight after Trick-or-treating (or Trunk-or-treating if you’re Pentecostal) Mariah Carey singing “All I want for Christmas” begins to bang on the door like Grond on the gates of Minas Tirith. We don’t need to wait. We can just skip right ahead. What a loss.

Recovering Seasonal Joy:

What is the solution? Am I advocating doing away with our modern advancements? No, of course not. They are a blessing and have truly saved and improved countless lives. So am I simply yearning for days of old, looking back on the past with rose colored glasses? No, well maybe a little. But I believe there is a simple solution to recovering seasonal joy.

What is this solution? The simple solution is to lean into the joys of the season. Avoid the temptation to skip ahead. Lean into the seasonal nature of the reality God made. This sounds simple, and it is. I think it is best demonstrated.

As I write this, autumn is beginning. Coffee shops are beginning to stock pumpkin spice everything. At this, many people tend scoff. And in many ways they are right to do this. I literally saw pumpkin spice flavored maple syrup the other day. But at it’s core, I think this is a good thing. Pumpkin spice is a truly seasonal thing. It is “available for a limited time only!” And because of this, it will serve my illustration well. We need to find things that distinguish the seasons. We need to find things that evoke the seasonal nature of God’s creation. And in an almost cartoonish way, Pumpkin Spice World does this. Pumpkins are symbol of autumn because they ripen on the vine in autumn. This is why pumpkin pie is directly associated with autumn. It is directly linked to the season.

So while it is acceptable to scoff at the overt marketing of our overlords doing this to make a buck, we should not mock the seasonal nature. Instead, we should lean into it. I’ll demonstrate. Every autumn, I have several traditions that I engage in. I break out my flannel shirts as the weather changes. My wife and I go out for coffee and make sure we get some distinctly fall flavor. We take the kids to corn mazes and apple orchards. I make apple cider mead. As the leaves fall, I rake them up and let the kids play in them (then I rake them up again). These may not seem special, but they are. They are things we can only do in autumn. This is the key. Enjoying the seasons God made is enjoying things that can only happen in those seasons. 

Thanksgiving: I smoke a turkey in my smoker. It is the only time I smoke a turkey, even though we long for smoked turkey all year long.

Winter: When snow begins to fly, I break out my sweaters. And we take the kids out to build snow men and have countless snowball fights. The wife and I go out for peppermint mochas together.

Advent: We set up our Christmas tree and begin our advent calendar. And Christmas does not begin until Christmas Day.

Christmas: We open presents. We eat ham and drink hot coco. We drive to see family and celebrate all 12 days of Christmas.

It really is this simple. And as my family has engaged in these seasonal activities, we have found ourselves growing more and more connected to the seasonal reality God made. It instills within us a longing joy. We could easily set up our Christmas tree anytime we wanted. But no, that is for Advent and Christmas only. We could go swimming at an indoor pool anytime we want. But no, that’s a summer joy. I could order pumpkin spice maple syrup online in April. But no, that’s an autumn oddity. As we lean into those seasonal joys, we have seen the desire for instant gratification lessen.

Here is the end of the matter: It is good to lean into the way God made the world. He made seasons for all things. Lean into this. This autumn take your kids to go apple picking. Take your wife out for a pumpkin spice late. Go jump in some leaves. Find the joy of the season you are in, and frolic a little.

(P.S. this is also a benefit of following the church calendar, but that’s a future article.)