What is your favorite season of year? Why?

That’s a tough one for me.

You see, in India, we have more than the typical four seasons to choose from—five, to be exact: Winter, Spring, Summer, Monsoon, and Autumn.

Living in the mountains, Summer gets immediately kicked off my favorites list. Sorry, Summers.

Spring is nice, don’t get me wrong.

The weather is perfect for travel, and you can see flowers blooming all around. It’s quite blissful, to be honest.

But lately, spring has started to feel a bit too hot, thanks to the changing weather patterns. And there seem to be fewer flowers than there used to be.

I remember in my childhood, we had a spring break of 7-10 days right after our final exams and before the results.

It was a time of pure freedom, with no studies at all.

Those were the best kind of holidays for me. I truly loved the spring of my childhood.

But yeah, it’s not on my favorite list anymore.

Autumn is quite similar to spring. The most noticeable difference is that instead of a landscape bursting with flowers, you see dry leaves or even bare branches.

Much like spring, autumn now feels a bit mixed.

In the cities, it can feel surprisingly warm.

But back in my hometown, it’s the perfect weather—not too hot, not too cold, just right for getting out and exploring.

The days also get shorter and the nights longer.

We had an autumn break too, for the same 7-10 days, but this time we had homework.

So, that definitely keeps it from being my favorite.

This is where it gets really hard to choose.

It’s a battle between Monsoon and Winter.

I love the monsoon because I absolutely love the rain.

But when it gets to be too much, it can become a real problem.

I remember in 2013, my state of Uttarakhand received such heavy rainfall that our school was closed for 10 days.

There was a lot of destruction, with landslides and other issues.

But but but the thing I love about Monsoon is – a day off, sitting in my room, windows open, no electricity, and all dark outside with irregular display of thunder and lightning.

Then, the rain starts to fall, and I’m just there, reading a book or listening to music.

I absolutely love that feeling; it’s indescribable.

And just an hour after the rain has stopped, a thick mist rolls in, covering everything. Seeing the soft glow of a streetlight through that mist is just so peaceful.

I love winters because they bring the same kind of pleasure as the monsoon but with less rain and an added bonus—snowfall!

Though it has sadly reduced since my childhood (thanks again, climate change), I just love watching those delicate snowflakes fall from the sky and trying to catch them mid-air.

It’s pure bliss.

I love the snowball fights and the creative designs we used to make with the snow.

Though, I’ve forgotten the last time I actually made one, since it’s been more than ten years since I’ve seen a good snowfall in my hometown.

It seems like whenever I’m here, it doesn’t snow, and when it does, I’m not here.

Such bad luck.

And that feeling of sitting around a warm bonfire, talking and eating peanuts (‘moongfali’)—all these little things make me feel so grateful for where I was born.

It was so pleasant here. It still is, but something has changed. I can’t quite put my finger on what.

I thought I would be able to make a decision by the time I finished writing this, but I couldn’t.

So, it’s a tie for me, guys.

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