By Berta Winiker

How to describe fall foliage, this eye candy, this crispness and clarity, this peak season of vibrance?

Behind the scenes the game of peek-a-boo has begun.

Chlorophyll is shuttering down and the pigments are stepping out. Anthocyanins are producing the reds, the carotenoids and xanthophylls reveal the orange, yellow and brown.

That is the science behind this parting of the curtains, no set start or end date for the performance.

I feel my breath slow, my attention shifts, I am sated.

Pigments aside, I move through the waxing and waning of this autumn splendor.

Within this coat of many colors, I accept the invitation to play with what I see.

I see a fruit salad – peach, persimmon, pomegranate, pear, plum.

I see Trix cereal – purple grape, lemon, lime, tangerine, cherry

I see the drape of fabric – russet, sienna, mahogany, loden, burgundy

I see gems and minerals – gold, ruby, topaz, copper, brass, garnet, amber

The crayons and artists’s paintbox have spilled forth an abundance and some lucky people make a living naming colors. In my next life I want to join them and spin letters into combinations such as banana mania, neon carrot and mauvelous.

In the meantime, I pay no attention to the timing of peak foliage. I am thankful that in this transition, I am paused in the play of pigments.

Return to Table of Contents