Saying farewell to the summer is never easy. As September makes its humid entrance into 2016, I wonder, will it end with a crisp chill and introduce October as the brisk month it so rightfully is? Or is global warming hogging the limelight? Time will tell.

Stashing my bikinis into their drawer and (finally) ridding my car of beach sand is a bittersweet phenomenon. I will miss June's anticipation of the memories to be made, July's wholesome excitement as the core of the season, and August's oppressive heat reminding us to soak it in while we still can. However, September comes welcomed on the east coast. Arise: local summer.

As tourists vacate the barrier islands, the streets and beaches begin to look, feel, sound, and even smell differently. I watch the waves kiss the shore in a way that says, "Finally, just you and I." The warmth in the air feels less asphyxiating and kinder, gentle. I overhear seagulls' conversations with attentiveness better than ever before. It's almost like eavesdropping, but without distraction. The Atlantic ocean has never smelled so sweet. The island enters a state of meditation.

I can feel the cool bite of the air as night falls in mid-September. Trying its best to hold onto its warmth, but slowly shedding it. With each setting of the sun, a few more degrees are stolen. With a heavy heart I release summer, and with open arms I welcome an autumnal lifestyle.

Although fall isn't the last season of the calendar year, it somehow brings about a sense of new beginnings. Perhaps it is the return of the back to school routine, or maybe it is the growing need for productivity caused by shorter days and earlier nights. Whatever the case, this particular change of season comes with a collection of emotions.

We pick apples and pumpkins and breathe in the dusty scent of hay. We anticipate the excitement of each holiday ahead, appreciating each phase of the closing year as one rolls into the next. Looking back with warm, fond memories, and looking forward with gratitude, I am thankful to live on the northern east coast. Each season change is an opportunity for personal change, for growth. Trees shedding their leaves remind me to let the past go. We will all grow again. This newfound chill in the air began as an uninvited guest, but has become a friendly reminder that I am an East Coast Local, and I could never ask for more.