Dori Gardner had just lowered a giant plastic garbage bag over her husband's head and shoulders and was pulling the drawstring tight when a plaintive voice interrupted her daydream.

"Dori, are you listening to me?"

With a poof, her vision of Rob dressed up as a bigger-than-life green bean vanished, and her
attention focused on the unadorned face and balding head of her husband seated across the kitchen table.

"Sorry, I guess I was wool-gathering," she replied.

"You should have enough for a whole sweater by now," he grumped. "I've been talking to you for five solid minutes."

"I was planning your costume for the party."

"That's what I was trying to tell you. I'm not going. I don't want to dress up this year."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want to make a spectacle of myself," he said, picking up his coffee cup and
rinsing it out at the sink.

Dori sighed inwardly. She'd run into his stubborn streak again. "We've gone to the Hunter's
Halloween party for 25 years. It's a family tradition."

"I only did it for the kids. They're off on their own, and I'm not doing it anymore."

Dori considered her answer for a long moment and then went over to begin loading the dishwasher.

"O.K.," she said in an even tone. There was no use arguing the point now. She might just as
well let him wander off to work, confident that he'd settled the matter once and for all.

She'd let Katie run interference. Katie was their middle child, sandwiched between two brothers,
and she'd long ago learned just how to get her way with the men in her life. Rob had always been a pushover for his favorite child. Dori might once or twice have experienced a twinge of jealousy for how well Katie did handle her dad, but Dori knew if she lived to be a hundred, she'd never have the smooth confidence of her daughter. Yet she was positively proud at having raised her.

Sometimes Dori wished she was twenty-something, rather than just squeaking past fifty. She and her close friend Sally Hunter often commiserated on coming from the "one foot" generation. With one foot dragging in the 60's and the other foot plunged into the 90's and forced to compete with the me-generation, Dori felt as if she had a split personality. At home, with Rob, she was one way; at work; with co-workers in their twenties and thirties, she was another. Dori and Sally agreed on one thing; at this point in their lives, they simply wanted peace. They weren't trying to make a statement; they were just trying not to make waves.

Besides, Dori genuinely loved going to the Hunter's costume party every Halloween. It was a chance to let her spark roam free, to have a little fun and to get together as a family.

"The old family rituals are falling by the wayside," she told Sally Hunter later that morning over coffee. "We don't pick apples or even rake leaves together anymore."

"The kids are too busy packing for college, and the leaves get mulched," Sally explained.

Dori didn't want explanations; she wanted commiseration. "And now one of our last truly family events is subject to Rob's whim of not wanting to look ridiculous," Dori declared. She supposed it had something to do with combing his hair to better hide the bald spot and switching from tuck-in shirts to pull-over sweaters.

"Jim's decided to look into hair transplants," Sally confided.

"What? I'd supposed that your husband at least at escaped male menopause," Dori replied.
"Do you suppose they all go nuts at the same time?"

"At about the same rate we do, or haven't you found yourself avoiding the full-length mirror lately?"

Dori hugged her blazer closed; it didn't quite meet to button comfortably. "I know what you mean, but at least we try not to take it out on everyone around us. Sometimes I think Rob doesn't love me anymore," she burst out.

Sally left her cup on the counter and came around to hug her friend. "Some days he may not like you," she said. "And some days, you don't like him. That's natural after all these years, but the love is always there, underneath it all. And those times when you're both on the same wave length seem to balance out the times when you're not."

"I guess I don't have the rhythm right. I just wish..." Dori paused.

"Wish what?"

"Wish I was twenty-five, curvy and gorgeous," Dori said. "Then I'd drive Rob wild with desire."

"You can do that anyway. You just need dimmer lights."

Dori laughed. "A bedside dimmer switch. You're right. That could change my whole love life."
She sighed. "Really, I just want to come to your party as a family, one more time."

"That's easily taken care of. Katie will make sure Rob cooperates," Sally assured her, glancing up at the clock on the wall. "And you've got to go now, if you don't want to be late to work; and I've got a house to show in half an hour!"

Dori reluctantly left the safe haven of the Hunter's cozy kitchen, remembering the first Fall that the Hunters had moved into their neighborhood, over twenty-five years ago. They'd all been newly-weds, broke and silly. When she and Sally had rigged up a spook walk in the Hunter's huge unfinished basement and invited the whole neighborhood, the tradition had begun.

Dori shivered as she recalled the intensity of those early years when just a glance from Rob gave her goose bumps. Lately she was tired and preoccupied; was her libido dead or had it just retired early? The worst part was that Rob hadn't seemed to notice. It wasn't just sex; there was enough romance left in her life. Memories of the young Rob surfaced every now and then and Dori wondered: did he long for the lithe, firm body she had once had?

She ignored her reflection in the glass doors as she entered the insurance building where she worked and decided to put her disconcerting thoughts aside. She'd leave a message on Katie's answering machine for her to call tonight.

That evening, after the routine low fat, low salt supper they shared, Dori tried to reach across the gulf of familiar silence as she and Rob settled in front of the T.V. set.

"You look tired. Want me to get the kinks out of your neck?" she asked him.

Rob turned to her with a grateful smile, and Dori moved closer to knead the muscles gently.

Rob sighed. "You haven't lost your touch."

Dori smiled as she smoothed and prodded the skin beneath her fingers. She spread the motion upward to his head, rubbing the scalp beneath the thinning hair. As her fingertips reached the bald spot, Rob spoke.

"I'm losing the battle," he said.

"To time or gravity?"

"Both, I guess."

"Does it really bother you that much?" Dori asked.

"Doesn't it bother you?"

"That way you look? No, you look fine to me. What bothers me is the way I look."

Rob turned to scrutinize her. "Same big green eyes, and you seem to have all your hair."

Dori gave a rueful laugh. "Well, everything is still there, all right. There's just more of what used to be less."

Before Rob could reply, the phone rang.

"I'll get it in the kitchen so you can watch the news," Dori said. "Katie was supposed to call tonight." She hurried to get the call, while Rob focused on the latest from CNN.

"Mom!" was Katie's enthusiastic greeting. "I swear you can read my mind. I was going to call you tonight, anyway."

"Everything OK?" Dori's mothering radar inquired.

"Of course," Katie replied and giggled. "Josh, quit tickling."

Dori imagined the vision of her son-in-law kissing his wife's neck and thought how lucky Katie was.

"I was hoping you'd help me convince Dad not to miss the Hunter's party." Dori launched into the explanation of her plans for the costumes. "I don't know why it had never occurred to me before, but dressing up as Mrs. 'Gardner' with you kids and Rob as veggies appeals to my sense of the absurd."

"That's cool, Mom," Katie said. "Don't worry about Dad. Josh and I will stop by in a little while, but don't tell. We want to surprise him."

When Dori went to rejoin Rob in the den, he was engrossed in the sports report. She felt more at ease, for she knew that Katie could cajole her father and brothers to cooperate. Brie might be the oldest, but he was still a kid at heart; and Matt, the youngest son, was sure to support his sister. As the only Gardner child married, Katie was the one most interested in seeing the family ties continued.

Not a half hour later, Katie and Josh burst through the back door with all the contagious enthusiasm of their youth, the crisp autumn leaves scattering unheeded across the floor. Even Rob couldn't resist Katie's sunshine, and her practiced handling of her father didn't take long to bring him to smiles.

"Josh and I have an announcement to make." Katie didn't take long to get to the point. "We'll share it with you guys tonight, but we don't want to make it public until the Hunter's party next week. Are you with me, Dad?"

Rob showed his proud-of-my-little-girl grin. "Is this about what I think it is?" Rob was always in tune with what was going on in Katie's life.

Katie hugged him. "You bet! We're going to make you grandparents - on or about April 1!"

Amid the hugs and kisses and confirmations of Rob's agreement to join the family "garden" at the party, Dori felt a momentary surge of something she couldn't quite explain. It was as if a door had closed in her life. She has to decently bury the young Dori and her dreams, once and for all, and concentrate on grand kids and the future. That's what she always wanted, wasn't it?

Of course it was, and yet, that twinge remained. Now she'd be third in line for Rob's attention, after Katie and the new baby. She wished she could talk to Rob about it, tell him that she'd like to return to the closeness they had once shared, but she had no idea how to begin.

The next week flew by. Dori always worked best under pressure of a time constraint, and by Saturday, all the costumes were done. Bowing to tradition, Dori and Sally had insisted that the party take place on the real Halloween, which this year fell on Sunday night.

After church is the morning, and a leisurely lunch, Dori made the final preparations for the the long-awaited event. At last, it was time to get ready, and all the kids gathered at the Gardner house to don their outfits. Even Rob seemed jovial.

Dori wore her floppy straw hat, gardening gloves, and jeans with the grubby knees, topped by a flower print sweatshirt. After the kids had left for the party, she'd sneaked a peek at her reflection in the full-length mirror before she and Rob headed off. Was her back view really that wide?"

But Rob, over her shoulder had grinned and said "Grandmas are supposed to have hips wide enough for the babies to ride on."

Dori felt better and decided to seize the moment. "How does it feel to be an almost Grandpa?"

"Old."

This echo of their earlier conversation touched her. "Well, we aren't, you know."

Rob appeared to digest that. "Yeah, I guess so. But it's hard thinking of myself in a stage of my life that I'm not sure I'm ready for. I don't think the kids realize how big the change in their lives will be."

"I don't think kids ever do. We didn't. But you know, I think Katie and Josh can handle it. In a way, I envy them. They're at the start of a whole new way of life."

Rob looked her in the eyes and took her hand. "I guess we are too, aren't we?"

There wasn't some great revelation at that moment, but the brief connection signaled to Dori that they were ready to move on to a new understanding.

The evening was a smash success. Rob was an obedient, if not a thrilled green bean; red-haired Brie, a radish; Matt, their youngest, a carrot, while Katie stole the show in a lumpy burlap sack labeled "potatoes" beside Josh, dressed as a chef wearing a broad grin and a sign "one in the oven." Katie and Josh's big announcement had been the highlight of the evening as their friends joined them in celebrating this milestone. Katie would be the first of their group to provide make parents into grandparents. It was a significant marker in all their lives.

Dori shook off worrying thoughts and basked in the moment. It was like old times with family and good friends around her, and the sweet smell of cider and doughnuts filled the air. She took pity on Rob and helped him shed the confining top of his costume early.

"Thanks for being such a good sport," she told him.

"I had to string along. I've 'bean' in worse outfits," he punned, and Dori enjoyed his good humor. She had enjoyed herself more that night than she had in a long time.

There was a definite chill in the air as Dori followed Rob out to the car when the party was over. She shivered and rubbed her arms. Her sweatshirt was more decorative than warm. Rob reached around her to unlock and open her door.

"The moon looks like a big pumpkin," Dori said, pointing out the orange-tinted full moon that filled the sky overhead.

"There'll be frost on the pumpkins on a clear night like this," he said, pausing to give her a hug. Dori eased into his chest, and they just stood that way for a moment. His arms encircled her, and as the warmth spread through her, she soaked it up eagerly. His hug felt so good, so familiar. Their lips touched....

"O.K., you two, break it up!" A laughing voice called from a nearby car. Dori and Rob broke apart suddenly, and a heated flush swept over her face. For just a moment, she had felt like she was sixteen and discovered by her father enjoying a stolen kiss with Rob in the driveway.

Then Rob laughed and waved to their friends, the Gordons, still dressed like Robin Hood and Maid Marion, getting into their own car. Rob grinned down at her. "Caught us, huh?" There was a shared moment as Dori realized that Rob, too, had been briefly snared in the web of remembering.

"Tonight I feel like a kid again. I wish I still looked like one," she said.

"You look the same to me," Rob told her. "But I don't just see you with my eyes; I see you with my heart. In my heart you'll always be the same age you were when I first made love to you."

Dori could barely reply for the lump in her throat. "Let's go home," she murmured, a promise in her soft words.

When they reached their house, they got out of the car and went inside quietly. It was late, but Dori knew that their silence had more to do with not breaking the mood than fear of waking the neighbors. Dori went through the familiar rituals of getting ready for bed with the feeling that she was preparing for something important. From her bottom drawer, she pulled the blue silk nightie that Katie had urged her to buy at a lingerie party last Spring.

"You never know, Mom," Katie had told her. "You might get lucky."

Do I feel lucky? Dori asked herself. Rob had gone to brush his teeth, and she concentrated on the sound of the running water through the door. I am lucky, she decided, and changed into the gown, letting the smooth texture brush against her skin as she pulled it over her body.

She moved to the sliding glass doors that overlooked the shadowed back yard and pulled open the drapes.Moonlight spilled into the room and fell in a silver stream over the floor and onto the bed across the room. She turned as she heard soft steps behind her. Rob pushed aside the hair on her neck and put his lips there. She shivered.

"Cold?" he asked.

"I feel like a cool pine tree in the moonlight," Dori said, looking out at the distant forest.

Rob's hands were warm on her shoulders as he placed tantalizing kisses along her backbone. "Maybe we can turn you to butter," he said softly.

Dori felt the heat from his lips moistening her skin like a warm summer rain. After along moment, Rob edged his smooth fingers down her arm and pulled her against his bare chest.

The pine tree swayed slightly as his lips claimed hers like a raging forest fire devouring the silent green forest that stretched to the sky. She felt as if he was urging her breath from her lungs, and a spot deep in her stomach ached and then eased into a yearning she hadn't felt in a long, long time. His lazy tongue sent waves of excitement over her as he licked and prodded her mouth, building tension gently.

Feelings long buried, stirred, awakened and burst into flame. Rob pushed the filmy garment from her shoulders, and it fell to the floor forgotten as he pulled her toward the bed. Seating her there, he knelt before her, his greedy lips seeking her breasts that prickled with anticipation. At the first touch of his tongue, a desire so strong that it overwhelmed her, made her arch forward. She cuddled his head as he sought and teased her with his tongue, his lips, his fingers.

The tree transformed into a fluid woman; living, breathing, and thrusting her body toward his.
With a swiftness that caught her breath in her throat, he lowered her to the bed, covering her body with his.

Moments so familiar, yet so newly exciting that they accelerated the ache into a throbbing need, stirred within her as she stretched to meet him. Once together, the rhythm began in a mutual expression of giving and receiving, rising and falling with each breath. Time stood still, until at last the waves of completion swept over them, and they lay still.

Dori sensed Rob leaning above her, and then he begin to plant soft kisses along the edge of her cheek, her eyelids, her forehead. She opened her eyes and lifted her hand to rub it along the length of his back, savoring the waves of satisfaction that filled her. She smiled at him.

"Moonlight becomes you," Rob said softly, and with a gentle shift of position, folded himself next to her, spoon style, and they floated into peaceful sleep.

But by the next morning, her own good humor had faded, as she reached over to turn off the alarm before facing the Monday workday ahead. Having the party on Sunday night, without a day to recuperate, didn't seem like such a great idea today.

Rob had left early for a meeting at a new job site, and she just couldn't seem to get going. She poked around, getting ready. The weatherman on the radio announced a cold snap and reminded his audience that November was underway.

The button popped off the wool skirt that she put on, so a pin had to suffice to expand the waistband; she couldn't find the matching sweater that she hadn't worn since last Fall, and she was definitely out-of-sorts and running late when she hurried through the kitchen door toward her car.

Darn, she'd never moved it to the garage yesterday, so she'd have to spend another ten minutes warming it up, and... Dori approached the driveway, and like the sun just peeking over the garage roof, the light in her eyes shone like a warm beacon when she saw her car. The frost had been scraped from all her windows, and there was a chrysanthemum plucked from the flower bed tucked under her windshield wiper.

Rob hadn't done anything like that for years. Suddenly, her heart melted like the fading frost. When Life was at its most unpredictable point, a ray of hope for the joy that lay ahead gave her courage to smile again.

Fall had always been her favorite time of year. Now, she knew that with a little tender loving care, the autumn of her life would bring the harvest she'd always dreamed about.

THE END