Autumn Leaves

Autumn leaves. (Click picture for larger view)

"Now Autumn's fire burns slowly along the woods,
And day by day the dead leaves fall and melt,
And night by night the monitory blast
Wails in the key-hole, telling how it pass'd
O'er empty fields, or upland solitudes,
Or grim wide wave; and now the power is felt
Of melancholy, tenderer in its moods
Than any joy indulgent Summer dealt."
~ William Allingham,
Day and Night Songs--Autumnal Sonnet

Some of the trees are still full with green leaves and others, those early changers are almost bare after forty mile an hour winds last night. At the curb these castaways gather in gentle mounds, waiting for rake or blower or mulcher to sweep them away. Even our pine tree was no match for the wind as a large branch broke and fell beside the sunroom; how then do the leaves with such delicate stems stand firm, some to the very end? I just love the mystery of Nature.

Submission for SeeItSunday topic "leaves". (end of post)