Around the South End of Concord, the September “Golden Hour” is the best hour.
It’s when normally quiet neighborhoods bustle as people finish up chores, play and conversation before dinner. It’s when students walk home after sports practice, when 9-to-5ers pull out the hose for their parched garden and birdseed for the feeder, and when neighbors stop and chat as they walk the dog.
It’s also the last chance to catch some summer. As the sun sets earlier and closer to the end of the school or work day, it’s hard to resist getting outside for those last, later rays.
On Thursday, though, the South End got a little preview of what’s to come. The sun hit its “golden” stride for several moments, enough for Lee Ames and 6-year-old Charlie to bike to their Concord home.
Then, dull and dark, the clouds came.
Elodie Reed