The times they are a-changin'

It's autumn in Utah. For weeks, I've been observing the colors as I've hiked, commuted, and lived. The colors are beginning to become muted and drab and will soon become wintry. The snows will come and most of the world's hue will be lost for a while.

Several of my favorite songs seem particularly appropriate for the season, so I made a few minutes to make a playlist for each of the seasons. I was surprised to find that the process of creating these playlists was a deeply introspective one. I now understand my own feelings towards the seasons better than ever before. I've included my playlists at the bottom, in case you're interested in seeing them.

When I think about life, I think of summer. I don't mean that things grow in the summer or that there's more greenery (although there is). I mean that, in my mind, summer is normal and the other seasons are the exception to the rule. Summertime is characterized by music that is upbeat and energetic. A lot of my upbeat dance music ended up in this playlist. Love stories in this playlist seem to be going well – or, at least, there are good prospects. My summer playlist is the longest of them, perhaps because I love summer so much. Or maybe it's because I love dancing.

In autumn, the world changes. Green turns to red and yellow. Heat fades. Clear skies become cloudy and it begins to rain. The music of autumn is reflective. It recognizes that not every good thing lasts. Some of the more acute breakup songs are in autumn, but so are some hopeful songs about change. There is brightness and color in the music, but the energy of summer is mostly gone.

Then the world fades into whites and browns. The sun hides and so do the people. For months, it seems as if there is no life or hope anywhere. There is nothing abrupt about winter, so it doesn't have sharp pains; instead, it has chronic ones. It is a time of longing for what was and wondering what might have been. There is hope for what might be, but it is marred by uncertainty about when or if the change will come. Although most of my dance music was in the summer playlist, there are several waltzes that found their way to my winter list.

Eventually, every winter begins to end when spring comes. The sun peeks cautiously from behind the clouds. The clouds are used to ruling the skies and fight back vehemently. Their efforts ultimately fail and, as the sun reasserts its preeminence, it brings new life to the world. Spring is a time of transition. There are somber days and setbacks, but there is always progress. Once spring begins, summer is no longer a distant, desperate hope but a certainty. The buds and leaves on every tree serve as constant reminders of what is to come. The music of spring is about new things, especially about new love and the hope that a budding love will mature into a deep, dependable one.

I'm not sure if I'm really being fair to some of the seasons. Actually, I'm more okay with winter than I ever have been before (yes, my feelings used to be stronger about it). But I tolerate winter at best. Maybe I'll be able to mature to the point that I can actually appreciate all of the seasons as they are.

Summer

• The Archies - Sugar, Sugar
• The Beatles - Golden Slumbers
• Bob Marley - Three Little Birds
• Boys Like Girls - Thunder
• Carl Douglas - Kung Fu Fighting
• Carly Rae Jepsen - Call Me Maybe
• Cupid - Cupid Shuffle
• Collective Soul - Heavy
• Daniel Bedingfield - Girlfriend
• Queen & David Bowie - Under Pressure
• Don Henley - The Boys Of Summer
• Duke Ellington And His Famous Orchestra - It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) (1999 Remastered)
• Duran Duran - Hungry Like The Wolf
• Eagles - Hotel California
• Louis Armstrong - Summertime
• Ellie Goulding - Lights
• Green Day - Oh Love
• Herman's Hermits - I'm Henry The VIII
• Herman's Hermits - Silhouettes
• Imagine Dragons - It's Time
• Iyaz - Replay (Album Version)
• Jimmy Eat World - Sweetness
• Justin Bieber - Baby
• Kansas - Carry On Wayward Son
• Katrina & The Waves - Walking On Sunshine
• Kate Voegele - Only Fooling Myself
• Led Zeppelin - Fool In The Rain
• Louis Armstrong - Hello Dolly
• Loverboy - Working For The Weekend
• The Lovin' Spoonful - Summer In The City (2003 Remaster)
• Michael Jackson - Beat It
• Michael Jackson - Bad
• Miley Cyrus - Party In The U.S.A.
• Miley Cyrus - Hoedown Throwdown
• Natasha Bedingfield featuring Sean Kingston - Love Like This
• Owl City - Alligator Sky (No Rap Version)
• Owl City - Air Traffic
• Owl City - Deer In The Headlights
• Owl City - Fireflies
• Owl City - Good Time (Feat. Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen)
• OneRepublic - Stop And Stare
• Owl City - Hello Seattle
• Owl City - On The Wing
• Prince - When Doves Cry
• Paul Simon - You Can Call Me Al
• Paul Simon with Los Lobos - All Around The World Or The Myth Of Fingerprints
• Phil Collins - True Colors
• Phil Collins - Dance Into The Light
• Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up
• La Roux - Bulletproof
• Sam Cooke - Another Saturday Night
• Savage Garden - The Animal Song (Album Version)
• Simon & Garfunkel - The Sound of Silence
• Starship - We Built This City
• Stevie Nicks - Edge of Seventeen
• Sting - Desert Rose
• Taylor Swift - Long Live
• Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
• U2 - Pride (In The Name Of Love)
• War - Low Rider
• Weather Report - Birdland
• Weezer - My Name Is Jonas

Autumn

• Sting - Fields Of Gold
• 3 Doors Down - Away From The Sun
• Annie Lennox - Into The West
• Collective Soul - Run
• The Dave Brubeck Quartet - Take Five
• Don McLean - American Pie
• Earth, Wind & Fire - September
• Fergie - Big Girls Don't Cry (Personal)
• Fleetwood Mac - Landslide
• Gladys Knight & The Pips - Midnight Train To Georgia
• Jimmy Eat World - Hear You Me
• Led Zeppelin - Ramble On
• Kate Voegele - Chicago
• Nelly - Just A Dream
• Oasis - Champagne Supernova
• Oasis - Wonderwall
• Timbaland/OneRepublic - Apologize
• Owl City - Meteor Shower
• Owl City - Vanilla Twilight
• Sarah McLachlan with Bryan Adams - Don't Let Go (with Bryan Adams)
• Savage Garden - Hold Me (Album Version)
• Seether feat. Amy Lee - Broken
• Simon & Garfunkel - April Come She Will
• Simon & Garfunkel - Leaves That Are Green
• Stereo Fuse - Everything
• Taylor Swift - The Best Day
• Taylor Swift - White Horse
• TLC - Creep
• The Tony Rich Project - Nobody Knows
• Train - Hopeless
• The Verve Pipe - The Freshmen
• The Weepies - World Spins Madly On

Winter

• The Beatles - The Fool on the Hill [from the Film "Magical Mystery Tour"]
• Billy Joel - And So It Goes
• Ella Fitzgerald - Dream A Little Dream Of Me
• Evanescence - My Immortal (Band Version)
• Jimmy Eat World - My Sundown
• Josh Groban - February Song (Album Version)
• Josh Groban - So She Dances (Album Version)
• Josh Groban - Remember When It Rained
• Kate Voegele - Kindly Unspoken
• Lighthouse Family - Ain't No Sunshine
• Lifehouse - Simon
• Owl City - January 28, 1986
• Phil Collins - One More Night
• Sarah McLachlan - Answer
• Simon & Garfunkel - Bookends Theme
• Taylor Swift - Back To December
• Sting - Shape Of My Heart
• Taylor Swift - Last Kiss
• Simon & Garfunkel - I Am a Rock

Spring

• Annie Lennox - Walking On Broken Glass
• Antonio Carlos Jobim - Garota de Ipanema
• Antonio Carlos Jobim - Samba de Uma Nota So
• Association - Windy
• Starship - Sara
• The Beatles - Here Comes the Sun
• Billy Joel - The Longest Time
• Coldplay - Paradise
• Daniel Bedingfield - Without the Girl
• Ella Fitzgerald - Let's Call The Whole Thing Off
• Ella Fitzgerald - They Can't Take That Away From Me
• Jesse McCartney - Beautiful Soul
• Louis Armstrong - What A Wonderful World
• The Lovin' Spoonful - Do You Believe In Magic?
• Mandy Moore - Crush
• Mandy Moore - Cry
• Marc Cohn - Walking In Memphis (LP Version)
• Miley Cyrus - The Climb
• Miles Davis - So What
• Norah Jones - Come Away With Me
• Owl City - Honey And The Bee
• Owl City - Hospital Flowers
• Owl City - The Real World
• Owl City - The Saltwater Room
• Paul Simon - Under African Skies
• Savage Garden - Crash And Burn (Album Version)
• Seal - Kiss From A Rose
• Seal - Love's Divine (Album Version)
• Simon & Garfunkel - Scarborough Fair/Canticle
• Sixpence None The Richer - Kiss Me
• Starship - Sara
• Taylor Swift - Fearless
• Taylor Swift - Today Was A Fairytale
• Train - Drops Of Jupiter
• U2 - I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For