Fourth of July in October

A week or so ago, Jeff & I visited the 4^th of July Canyon.  It’s the one place in New Mexico that has the perfect environment for great fall color, ala New England.  However, this year, due to the weather and some windy days, the great panoramas of brilliant color weren’t there to see – darn!  However, walking thru the woods a bit did offer some wonderful fall color.

 

Sometimes, that color was found at my feet!  The orange and gold leaf stood out against the dried out foliage on the ground.  Good-bye to summer and hello to a seasonal change.

 

New Mexico is known for its chilies, both red and green.  When you order both red and green chilies with a meal, it’s referred to as “Christmas”.  Well, I guess Christmas can also be found in the autumn colors of the leaves still remaining on the trees, too!

 

Red leaves are really one of the prime fall colors and this leave really was showing off its stuff.  Inadvertently, the colors of the leaves behind it truly highlighted it.

 

 

There was something about this leaf that appeals to me.  It just seemed to tell a tale about a long season, full of adversity, as evidenced by the holes in the leaves from one bug or another munching on it.  Yet, it stood firm and is giving forth its last valiant effort of an orange burst of color.

 

I love the lighting in this image.  The sun just seemed to pick this bunch of leaves to bring to someone’s attention via a natural spotlight.  The peacefulness that I felt walking thru the woods just seems to radiate from this image.

 

This bunch of leaves just seems to show all the phases of summer into fall.  We have the green of summer giving way to the gold and orange of autumn.  The leaves are losing their moisture and are drying and dying on the tree branch.  Soon, they will be on the floor of the forest, acting as insulation for plants for the upcoming winter.

 

But, autumn doesn’t give way to winter easily.  The brilliant color almost seems to be Nature’s way of burning the beauty of color into our brains so we don’t forget it over the winter.

 

I just love the way these leaves show off their remaining color – the warm autumn colors against a background of blue sky and still some green leaves on other trees.

 

I’ll end as I began – looking down for treasures!  And, I was rewarded by a butterfly that was willing to pose for me as he rested on the ground.  Until next spring, little guy!

Enjoy!