Now that the derby is over, the talk of the Island is about change, about a time of year when the pace of Vineyard life slows enough to enjoy the seasonal gifts of autumn, a period of noble days and cool nights. Our year is in transition, caught before the first hard frost.

The fading year marches on and everywhere around us the signs of change are apparent. The smell of chimney smoke touches the evening air and the sails of summer are disappearing, except for a few lingering boats that play beneath the deep blue of high ocean skies and across the golden glitter of Island waters.