March 6th, 2007 : The First to Fall
The inconsistent breeze that was persuading a handful of fluffy clouds across the sky was also swirling among the trees causing intermittent cascades colorful leaves to drop to the ground. Another one landed in my lap. Yellow and green was this one, sporting five leaflets from it’s center stem. The last on was red. The breeze swept up again stealing my new acquaintance and depositing it with a mess of others a few feet away.
Around me are the sounds of a pleasant autumn day, rustling leaves, birds careening about the sky and the occasional passer-buyer who hardly seems to lift their eyes from the sidewalk. The autumn scent of leaves filled my nostrils, I took another deep breath. The inactivity of human kind was made up for by nature. Bugs and seeds traversed through the air prodded along by intermittent gusts of wind. A squirrel busies itself in burying a nut, cautious of my presence.
The serenity of the situation pulls me into a pacifying state. I find myself perfectly content. Another bug bites me on the arm; I roll my eyes at this ironic twist following my previous statement. I slap the creature away with a twang of annoyance. For such a tiny critter they certainly have found a way to announce their presence to an unwelcoming audience.
Dried leaves continue upon their death march, like lemurs on a cliff. Some still cling to the tree in the hope that they can live forever. A couple of weeks and they too would give into peer pressure and the force of gravity. Their preservation made me happy, the determination to hold out as long as possible is something I can relate with. Slowly but surely the wind winds down, allowing the crickets and frogs to become the dominant soundtrack, rather then the whispering of the leaves. Crows cackle in the distance and church bells begin to ring out across the clear sky. The crows, though distant, are repugnant, relentlessly proclaiming their obnoxious call, like a little child begging for attention.
A swarm of bugs now congregates around my haven. The wind is dead and the warmth of the sun radiating from my body attracts a variety of insects. They bite and sting at my legs, land on my arms and become smudged on my page. My irritation cries out “Leave! Go inside! You don’t need to put up with this.” Yet, it’s hard to move. Hard to pull out of the tranquility in which I have anchored myself so deeply. Again, I am assaulted by multiple bites almost as if executed by an experienced strategist. The church bells still ring clearly as another bug attacks my face. I slap at myself, in an attempt to destroy this abundant nuisance. Rubbing my legs together like a grasshopper, I hope to drive away the pests. Two more on my hand and another on my watch. I sigh, it’s an endless battle for comfort.
Yet, the strains of displeasure only serve to make the times of contentment that much more perfect. I have not spent nearly enough time outside this year. Factories, basements and computer screens have sucked away valuable hours which could have been spent outside. An epidemic of necessary evil that encapsulates mind drawing it away from nature into our expeditious urban society. I look around one last time at the scene, drawing in every last detail into my sponge like mentality. If only days like this could last forever. It’s time to head inside now, to find editable substances, but I can now do so in the satisfaction that I have had opportunity to spend my first full day of fall, outdoors.