Al Kyte's Life Take-Aways

                                 

California is not known for dramatic seasonal weather swings.  Such changes here are most apparent in the mountains where I have particularly enjoyed the onset of Fall.  Even on the sunny days, I could feel that Winter was not far away.  The air was cooler; summer crowds, departed; skiers, not yet arrived; animals, more in evidence; and fish, still hungry.  Perfect. 

Our garden also takes on a different look and feel in the Fall.  Not only are the sunny days cooler but the the air is fresher as well.  Our deciduous trees and shrubs start dropping their leaves to reopen views I haven’t seen since early Spring.  

In this season I enjoy spending time adjusting the number and placement of rocks in my various outcroppings in an unending effort to further enhance the natural look of the landscape throughout a garden not intended to resemble a typical garden.  I am as interested in the beauty between the plants as in the plants themselves.

There are fewer blooms than in the Spring and Summer, but color nonetheless.  The cooler nights have helped paint my Vine Maple leaves in reds, oranges and yellows bringing an attractive contrast to the year-around, fresh-green foliage of nearby manzanitas.  And the red berries of the Toyon add their own Fall color—until the robins and cedar waxwings begin their annual feeding frenzy, marking for me the arrival of Winter.  When I see that happening, I try to drop whatever I am doing to sit out among those Toyons where I’ve seen upward to 30 birds intently rushing back and forth past me in the air, some within arms reach.  It’s exciting in the middle of a feeding frenzy, even as an observer.

Among the other colorful leaves of Fall are the red leaves of my Mountain Dogwood.  This plant blesses us twice a year with beautiful color.  In the Spring I look forward to its lovely white flower heads.  This showy beauty reminds me of the exuberant outward beauty of a young person in the Spring of life.  Yet such beauty in flowers and people typically fades with time.  But in the Autumn of life when many plants have become brown and withered, that dogwood’s entire foliage can turn a brilliant red.  This reminds me of the deeper beauty of an older person who, in spite of trials and difficulties endured, has chosen to remain positive in outlook, even giving off a joy that lifts the spirit of everyone around. This is the beauty that gives me the example to follow in the years still before me. 

I am thankful for such people, the mountain dogwood, and the Fall season itself and regard them as beautiful gifts from a personal God.