Autumn's Splendour.

Autumn.... a time for introspection, reflection, and taking stock.

As a child, autumn was just one more step in a long adventure I knew as my life. Summer was followed by school, shorter days, heavier clothes, and finally snow. Somewhere in there, the event known as “Autumn;” sometimes known as “Fall,” occurred. The leaves turned colour, then fell to the ground, none of which really made much difference in my young life.

As I became a teen, a vigorous “back to nature” movement was in full momentum. By that time, I had learned to appreciate the spectacle of Autumn’s painting. I followed in my Father’s footsteps and learned to use a rifle and became a hunter in the fall. Soon enough I discovered that I preferred to just look at the forests than to kill the inhabitants thereof. I began hiking around the open spaces of abandoned farms, visible to hunters yet in contact with the trees and drying grasses. I would sometimes carry a notebook and jot down a poem or short story.

As I began driving, I was able to go to other parts of the Province, places I hadn’t often seen before. I marvelled at the different colours from region to region, species to species... Maple, Birch, Oak, Beech, Aspen... All took on a different hue in Autumn; some red, some yellow, orange, brown... Some kept their green but it became muted or lighter than its summer vibrancy.

As a touring musician, I got to see the Autumn in every province in Canada. I think among the most beautiful places in this great country is the Niagara peninsula. How amazing it is!

As I grew older, I began to find Autumn depressing. I dreaded winter's arrival; the cold and shivering, the snow, the dangerous driving. Autumn also reminded me I was growing older. Each one came around a little sooner than I expected it to, a lot sooner than I wanted. I spent many years feeling melancholy during Autumn's visit.

Last year, I was once again living in south-central New Brunswick. I spent many Autumn days in or near Odell and Wilmot Parks in Fredericton. I watched the leaves turn magnificent colours and fall to the earth below, and I realized just how much I need that. Without Autumn, Summer would become meaningless and boring. Autumn reminds us to make Summer count for soon she will be gone.

Yesterday I had some time available, and my camera was blessed with fresh batteries, so I took a short drive and took some photos. I was pleased with the results and posted some of them in a You Tube video, although that concept seems strange to me; still images in a video. Heh... Watch it here

~Still Wandering…