It’s incredible to realize the gorgeous difference a single day can make in the midst of vibrant transformations. After traveling to Lake Geneva yesterday, skipping my usual neighborhood walk, I returned to find the once green trees had gloriously transitioned. So many more of these spectacular beings sparkled in the most amazing shades of reds, oranges, and yellows.
I wandered from one tree to the next, completely awed at how the trees had exploded in color. Just a day earlier, the rich, mostly solid greens had dominated the leaves, with just sprinkles of autumn hues blended into the foliage. Now, as I looked around, absorbing the vivid shades, their brilliance even brighter from the golden sunshine, I felt happily overwhelmed by the fantastic saturation of colorful fusions, each tree its own unique masterpiece.
I loved to stare far up into the interlocking branches, so gracefully extended to the glimmering sky, and absorb all of the magnificent shades. They were absolutely amazing to witness, to admire with the greatest delight! And as I captured as many photos as possible, I marveled at how these breathtaking colors, all the same collection of shades, looked so different on each tree, blended in ways never quite replicated again.
That observation reminded me that each tree truly is individual. Every single one’s an original work of awe-inspiring art deserving of celebration, a reverence for nature’s capacity to create without ever copying prior explosions of incredible color.
Autumn really offers the most gorgeous, eye-opening beauty. I never know what I’ll see from one day to the next. That wonderful reality makes fall such an awesome adventure, filled with unexpected discoveries to treasure. I can hardly wait to find out the immense loveliness that tomorrow’s journey will reveal!
Alisa Burris
Alisa Burris is a literary fiction author whose work depicts alienated lives with glimpses of mystery blended into the narrative layers. Her novel Detached explores how three vastly different women cope with the trauma of a violent murder in their townhome community as they face private secrets of their own. She’s in the process of writing her next novel, titled Multicolored, Genuinely Felt, that follows a widowed artist’s unpredictable journey to learn her recently deceased husband’s true identity. In the midst of her shocking discoveries, she learns more about herself and her own capacity than she ever imagined possible. Not only does Alisa focus on writing stories that reflect today’s complex world, she holds a PhD in English. Her dissertation specifically examines the fiction of Jewish-American women authors in the context of the cultural estrangement that they personally experienced during the twentieth century.