| The following column appeared in The River Reporter on October 8, 1998. |
By Bert S. Feldman
The Recusant Reporter
Thursday, October 8, 1998
Old Mother Nature is putting on her big autumn show once again, as she prepares to snuggle under her white blanket and rest until spring comes around once more.
The autumn foliage display in the Catskills is indeed a thing of beauty and a joy to behold. I do not understand why our county officials do not advertise the presence of country beauty more in the metropolitan newspapers and magazines. People would surely want to see this display of autum fireworks.
The question of where the various colors come from on the previously all-green trees is a query we hear much about at this time of year. The answer is quite simple – they were right there, all along! The natural growth of chlorophyll, the green substance that nourishes the trees, dies off as the autumnal equinox time of year rolls around on our planet’s endless circle through space.
Changing hours of sunlight and the cooling temperature signal all living things that it is time to settle down for a long and cold winter. And, according to the Old Farmers’ Almanac, we are expecting an old fashioned winter with lots of snow and cold. Bears and other hibernating animals seek out a place where they can be comfortable and sleep the dark days of wintertime away. For many animals, especially deer, it is time for mating so that newborn offsprings’ can be born in the warming days of spring.
Meanwhile, the trees are preparing to snuggle down as well. The sap which nourishes the tree slows down and shuts off. A tiny ball of wax forms where the leaves sprout from the parent tree, and the leaves tumble down to form nature’s own compost pile on the forest floor.
Of course, with the evergreen trees, the process is somewhat different. Designed by nature to fold up like an umbrella under the weight of the winter snow and ice, the needles of the hemlocks, spruce, pines and other coniferous trees are prepared to withstand the worst that old Mother Nature can fling at them.
But when the hours of sunlight lengthen and the spring equinox rolls around once again, the leaves will return to adorn their parent trees with a new growth of green foliage. The sap will flow through the veins of the trees and the fawns, foals, cubs and other newborn animals will frolic in the warmth of the sun.
So is it with all of us here on spaceship earth. Humankind will grow, flourish and beget new generations to carry on life. They will age and, in due time, they will wither away and die, to be replaced by their offspring.
As is written in Psalm 103: "As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourishes."
But we must be the best flower, the richest grass we can be. And, as with the rest of nature, call it what you will, we will weather the snow, withstand the cold as well as the heat of summer, and go on along with the eternal wheel of life. Be sure to grab a brass ring as you go around!
Now, get out there and drink in the beauty of our countryside in the autumn!
