Good Blood, Bad Blood

Autumn slips into place without a sound. One leaf, then another bleeds color at its edge. At first glance, I wonder, is that tree diseased? On succeeding days, the contagion spreads throughout an entire branch. Silently, the season tattoos foliage with melancholy.

Autumn slips forward with the quiet magic of chemistry. Daylight declines and temperatures cool. The mask of chlorophyll falls away. Underlying pigments in the leaf reveal themselves. They blend to create brilliant yellow and red hues that contrast with multi-shaded browns.

Blood red and gold colors.

A collection of leaves found on the street last year.

Tawny to deep chocolate colors.

Autumn slips in under the cover of summer’s forest fires. It infiltrates the canopy of deciduous trees while smoke filled skies distract our attention. The sun’s glow softens, diffused by the particulate in the air. It gilds the horizons with glamour and a tule fog of tragedy besmirches the streets in town.

A wildfire burns with ferocity in the  Columbia River Gorge. Fueled by dry timber and strong wind, it leapt from 4,000 acres to 33,000 acres in the first five days of September. I grieve for the destruction of forest land. Reckless behavior ruined habitat and caused the death of a multitude of small animals.

Initially, the fire moved west, threatening Portland, OR. Then, the wind shifted. It headed our way, growing at a deliberate pace. The wind shifted once more. This turned the blaze back upon itself. The fire continues but its growth slows.

Nonetheless, no matter where we are, no matter how well we order our lives, no matter how best we prepare for the good and bad, something is always headed our way. The fury of hurricanes in Texas and Florida, and the Eagle Creek fire in Oregon made for a hellish beginning to autumn. These are American catastrophes. Elsewhere, however, destructive incidents persist: famine, disease, wars in Syria and Myanmar. All this, plus the inconvenience of global warming.

Autumn slips forward and quietly changes everything. Solace resides in the machinations of the natural world. The routine, the inevitability of seasonal change occurs in spite of our behavior. There is winter inherent in fall’s splendor; the rebirth and growth of spring awaits in the bitter dormancy of January. An underlying balance exists. Harmony surrounds us.

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