Summer is more than just a season. It’s a time of innocence, of play and of a return to childhood. Even in college, when many of us work over the summer months, we can’t help but feel that summer is special among the seasons. It’s a symbol of our fondest memories of youth — riding our bikes, going to the beach, eating ice cream off a cone. Fall, then, symbolizes the end of our childhood, and the final days of summer become a time of reflection. What do we leave behind at the threshold of fall? How can we reclaim the youth we have lost? This playlist hopes to capture the emotion elicited by those first cold September days — the realization that summer is at its end.

“Wasteland, Baby!” — Hozier

Vivid images of doomsday and apocalypse saturate the title track of Hozier’s second album, drawing parallels to the fall months: the absence of sun, the biting cold and the barren trees. Yet, “Wasteland, Baby!” is a declaration of perseverance and love. Summer may be over, and winter may be coming quickly, but we can all grab a loved one and settle in for the long, cold months ahead. After all, “the death of all things that are seen and unseen / Are an end but the start of all things that are left to do.”

“Yesterday” — The Beatles

This classic Beatles song reminisces about lost love, lost innocence and lost happiness. Its slow, somber tune evokes the feeling of not only melancholy, but resignation. Why did childhood have to leave? There’s no way to know — all we can do now is long for yesterday.

“betty” — Taylor Swift

Through sighing lyrics about the regret of the end of a relationship, “betty” perfectly captures the nostalgia of the end of summer. Don’t we all wish we could go back, fix our mistakes and set ourselves on the right track for our future? “betty” is the perfect song to listen to while driving down the highway as leaves turn from green to gold.

“Let Her Go” — Passenger

Passenger’s “Let Her Go” urges the listener not to take anything for granted. We tend to “only miss the sun when it starts to snow” — we only realize we’ll miss summer and all it stands for when it’s gone. As fall arrives, we look back on what we have taken as a given and wonder why we didn’t appreciate it while we had it. This song calls on images of regret for what is lost, offering no solution, just comfort — and sometimes that’s all the listener needs.

“Imagine” — John Lennon

This iconic song has been covered by countless artists, and for good reason. It is an anthem of hope. Even if the world is changing for the worse, we can take it upon ourselves to make it better. As the state of the world cycles, so do the seasons. Summer may turn to fall, and fall to bitter winter, but winter will eventually give way to spring. New life will arise from the wasteland. One day, there will be “nothing to kill or die for,” and “the world will live as one.”

Check out these songs and more on this Spotify playlist!