Pondering among the leaves...

 

Such a lovely morning this morning, I decided to take a walk in the leaves. Granted, my pace has been slower than normal lately due to a cold, but sometimes slowing down is what helps us see the trees rather than the forest.

 

I love autumn. As a kid, I had a long driveway to walk down to get to the bus stop. Shuffling through the leaves and warming the frost on my nose, was actually one of my favourite parts of the day. Still is! I have a natural affinity for both paper and the trees it comes from. The one in the picture resides across the street from me. Our tree is smaller and more spindly, not a climber and covered in kids all summer long!

 

 Yes, I do still shuffle through leaves. Living in the Eastern part of Canada, we have such a wide variety of them. Maples, oaks, chestnut...the colours are breathtaking and the photos we get while hiking are amazing.

 

One of my favourite memories of fall in Ontario is when my brother and his wife first came to visit us for Thanksgiving and we took them hiking. My sister-in-law had never seen a real maple leaf (in her defence, neither had we before we moved here. There's just no such thing in Alberta!). Her excitement when she found a perfect red maple leaf lying on the ground was contagious! Then the kids pointed to the thousands of maple trees that surrounded us. She was a bit sheepish, but thrilled to see so many lovely leaves of every autumn colour. We still joke about that first maple leaf, but it's a memory that will live on forever!

 

Autumn is also the best time for me to dive back into writing. The kids are at school, the air is crisp in the morning and warm come lunch and going for long walks not only rejuvenates my soul, it stirs something in my brain that gets me primed to sit and write.

 

Where September is a rush of back to school, seminars and signing new students at work and constant stress, October is more laid back for me. Routine is setting in and I can focus again. It's when I am the most productive.

 

This fall, my oldest son has Reading Week at the end of October. I'd never heard of that before, but I'm glad for the opportunity to spend time with him and get in a bit more hiking. And, since he is a writer as well, a lot more brainstorming!

 

Have fun shuffling in the leaves!