Today's MOZEN: Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

Words and photo by F LoBuono

Every year I say the same thing: I guess we won't be getting the usual spectacular Fall colors this year. There always seems to be one reason or another as to why - it's been too wet. It's been too dry. The summer was too cold. The summer was too hot. Whatever the cause, I always feel that this year's crop couldn't be as vibrant as the last - until it is!

Science tells us that the change in color of the leaves on deciduous tress is based on a number of factors such as the growing conditions through out the year, including the amount of rainfall. However, the major factor in their turn from green to the blazing oranges, yellows, and reds we associate with the Autumn season is the change in the amount of light the trees receive. As the days grow shorter, the trees receive less and less sunlight creating an internal chemical reaction that results in a near kaleidoscope of colors. Changes in any or all of these factors will result in a corresponding difference in the colors produced. The only constant is they it WILL change.

All we need do is wait.

The change is gradual. It usually begins sometime in early/mid- October. Little by little, we will notice the change in a few trees. There may a splash of orange here, or a dash of red there. It's not a deluge but, rather a trickle. Gradually, more and more trees join the color cascade. However, sometimes, it is so gradual we don't notice the rate at which they are actually changing. At least I don't!

This year was no exception.

Patience, by my own admission, is not one of my strongest virtues. In fact, I struggle with it. I tend to be a little hyperactive so patience is something that I need to work on regularly. And, I do. Still, it is an effort. When by mid-October the hills aren't ablaze in color, I figure the season is going to be a dud. It was a very hot and dry summer. So, it was not illogical to think that, perhaps, this fall would be a dud in comparison to some if the others. And, I wasn't the only one who felt that way. More than one person expressed to me the same concern: gee, it just doesn't seem like we are going to have a great Fall this year. As mid-October turned to late, there were hints of but no burst of color.

Until there was - almost overnight!

Just as I was about to lose hope it happened. Seemingly overnight, my world exploded with visual delights. Everywhere I looked my eyes were met with a blaze of hues. The verdant hills were now a cacophony of color! Red blended with orange, yellow and different shades of green proving nature's palette to be unmatched. The season was every bit as spectacular as it always seems to be.

And, it was delightful.

I suppose that the moral of the story is good things do indeed come to those who wait. One of these years, I'll actually get it. ;)