The Leaves of Autumn

The Leaves of Autumn

by

B.D. Adams

                                                                                     Clip Art

Autumn. Cool, but not cold. Those of us who have lived in the north regions look forward to the Autumn with anticipation! Not just about all the raking, but more of what will this winter hold for us?

I have lived in the north since I was 19 years old. My first experience with snow was when I had just turned nineteen in Ohio. It snowed the one night and I awoke to two feet of snow on the ground, along with a blustery wind! I was ready to move back to Texas with or without my husband!! He really didn’t warn me of how the winter could be.

Oh, well ... I toughed it out and fell in love with the seasons!

When I moved to New Hampshire, the old-timers felt the need to warn me about the intense snow storms. It was obvious to me that none of them had been to Ohio or Michigan (where I had previously resided, a while back) to experience those winters.

I look at it this way ... wherever one lives in the north, the winter will be a challenge!

However, I digress ... let’s get back to Autumn.

The song “Autumn Leaves,” sung by Nat King Cole, was a favorite song when my mother would play her 45s on the stereo. I loved the song, but we didn’t have the Autumn in Texas like seen in pictures of the north! As I grew up, I so wanted to see falling leaves as described in the song.

I lived in Columbus, Ohio, mostly around Ohio State University, where I attended. My first memory of the definite Autumn leaves was when I lived in an older neighbor-hood to the east of the University. Many vintage trees of Oak and Maple as well as Ash and Beech!

My first apartment in Columbus was in an equally vintage apartment building, circa 1940. I remember the first Autumn I spent there ... I walked down the 15^th Avenue to the main gate of the University to just savor the cool afternoon. This walk took me to The Oval, the large center common to the campus. This is where students or just people, in general, could enjoy nature or study or spoon with a new other. Today, there were not many people. There had been a brief rain shower that morning, but the dogged leaves still swirled and the colors were so vibrant! The tree trunks were dark from the rain, which made the colors stand out even more! There was a breeze that tickled the dry leaves to dance and play tag with each other. So many leaves danced but many more remained joined, didn’t want to say good-bye to their host.

All I could think was “Fear not, little leafs, you are the reason the tree survives, to be again part of life!”

My major in college was Fine Arts, so when I returned home after my invigorating walk, I took out my pastels and paper and drew what I had seen. I felt so fortunate to finally experience the leaves of Autumn! No, I do not still have that drawing, but it has remained a good memory to this day.

I welcome every Autumn in New Hampshire, as I take walks, but I also salute the season as I had done in Columbus. After the first walk, I brew a nice cup of tea, a mug of cocoa or pour a glass of wine to observe the change that nature wants us to appreciate through the windows.

I will sit covered with my afghan, with a nice fire in the wood stove. When the days are too blustery for easy walks, I will watch the seasons through my windows as they casually announce their changes in New Hampshire ... I will watch the leaves of Autumn.

           

                                                                    by Brandy Adams 2012