Be Capitalized: Should Autumn

Dear Sir or Madam, she wrote. For years I have believed that seasons are not proper nouns. But last night, I met autumn—no, Autumn—in the street. She wore gold on her sleeves and smelled of apples. And I realized: we capitalize what we respect, what we love, what we welcome like a guest. Autumn has a personality, a presence, a promise. She deserves the dignity of a capital letter.

Perhaps grammar is not about correctness. Perhaps it is about attention. And Autumn, I think, has earned ours. should autumn be capitalized

The letter was never published. But Clara didn’t mind. The next day, she walked past the baker’s shop and noticed he had changed his sign. It now read: The Best Cake of Autumn. The A was tall, proud, and gold-leafed. Dear Sir or Madam, she wrote

Leo looked at her as if she’d just told him the moon wasn’t real. “But Autumn is a name,” he said. “She comes every year. She’s my friend. She brings the crunchy leaves and the cold air and the smell of wet dirt. She’s not a thing. She’s a person.” She wore gold on her sleeves and smelled of apples

P.S. I am capitalizing Autumn from now on. You can fire me if you like. But I suspect Autumn will still arrive, with or without your permission, and she will still be magnificent.

She signed her name and, for the first time in her career, added a postscript: