Sometimes you can convince yourself that it isn't bad — summer ending, the rest of the year beginning. But it is bad. I like cool, crisp nights as much as anyone, that hint of a fall smell that's in the shadows right now, and the way the late afternoon light makes the world look suddenly prettier. I like seeing all the little kids with their new haircuts and scrubbed faces, their backpacks as clean as they are, walking to school and waiting at bus stops. I love what September is for them: a beginning, another notch on their growth chart, new grade, new teachers, new chance.