Fall is now upon us and winter is soon to follow. For some, this is a time of griping about the cold and sprinting from their car to their door. For others, the falling of the first leaf or the loosing of the first snow upon the world means beautiful fall colors, Christmas lights and friends and family.

I am definitely of the latter, and in this column, I am going to explain why fall and winter are the superior seasons.

First, let me explain some of the cons of spring and summer, the inferior seasons.

The clearest difference between winter and summer is the temperature. In the summer, the sun beats down on you without any mercy, and there is not a thing you can do about it besides suffer in silence.

However, in the winter, if you are feeling the chill, you can simply put on another layer. Summer is also lacking in celebrations. Watching fireworks is fun and all, but it just doesn’t have that certain excitement that comes with other holidays. Although the problem of bugs is forgotten when they are not around to bother us, they are positively one of the most annoying downsides to summer.

This brings us nicely to the pros of fall and winter.

Obviously, the celebrations are one positive aspect. I would argue that the most important and exciting holidays all happen within three months at the end of the year: Thanksgiving, Halloween, New Year’s and Christmas.

Each of these holidays represents a coming together of the family to celebrate all that they have together.

As mentioned before, particularly in the fall, the weather is absolutely perfect. There is nothing better than coming outside of your house and not immediately regretting it for the first time in months.

Some may claim that the air biting your skin is worse than being sweaty for three months straight. To them, I would remind them that you can put on a coat when you are cold, but can only take off so many things to cool down before you are not allowed in public anymore.

The most important part of fall and winter, however, is the aesthetic.

The spring and summer — although they may conjure images of beaches and cookouts — simply don’t have the same depth and meaning to them as the later part of the year. The fall is full of deep, warm colors and things like pumpkin pie and apple cider.

There are simply no better landscapes than those covered in snow. To see a once diverse landscape be suddenly reduced to a sparkling, flat surface that extends for as far as the eye can see and forests where each naked branch is highlighted by the bright snow makes one filled with wonder.

Along with the beauty of the winter is the holidays. Eggnog, gift-giving, friends and family and more all come together to create the perfect mix of coziness, nostalgia and peace.

The second half of the year is a simpler time. Filled with soothing landscapes and holidays that strengthen love, it is a time for people to relax and re-focus on what is important in life.