Beauty is trapped for a moment in the snapshot, balancing on the shift from autumn to winter.
The rocks have been polished by the waterfall as it sheets over their faces, droplets - shards of diamonds - spattering the rocks as the water thunders past, merging with the lake below. Ripples stretch across the surface, disturbed from their regularity only by the shoreline. Further disturbances are caused by frogs and fish, the perpetrators disrupting the harmony like rambunctious swimmers in a pool.
Leaves float from the trees to the water, their brilliant colors a sharp contrast to the blue beneath them. Birds nest in the branches, some on their way to the south and others settling in for the winter. Their calls and songs mingle with one another in an untidy symphony.
The fresh scent of greenery steals the nose away from other intriguing smells of the forest. A breeze threads its way through the trees, pushing up drifts of fallen leaves and tossing them playfully about - a child with its favorite toys.
The insects have fled from the frosts, but the crickets remain in the grass. They chirp, seeking the company of their companions and hoping they are not destined to be alone. If the bees were still in the wood, their buzzing would fill the air as they dart from flower to flower. Alas, it is not to be -- they have vanished with the daisy and the tulip and the rose.
The snow will soon reign, conquering the forest and locking the plants within its grasp. But, for the moment, life is present: the birds sing and the trees have not yet lost their leaves to the chill.
The change from autumn to winter cannot be stopped, but while the seasons make their transition, we can appreciate the change itself. If spring was meant to last forever, it would, but we need the winter just like we need enemies and friends.
