GREEN-GOLD AFTERNOON

Buckeye butterfly on goldenrod. 

What a day! The temperature outside is a balmy 75˚F.  Bright afternoon sun is gleaming through the lush canopy leaves of the sycamore, hackberry, and box elder trees along the river, turning them an autumnish golden-green. Slowly but surely the new season claims the land, each day bringing a bit more color.

Yesterday, friend and fellow-father-in-law, Rich, and I spent several hours ambling around various prairies and old fields, looking for fall color scenes to photograph. It's still a bit early hereabouts, but the goldenrods and asters were lovely. Given the number of cold nights we've had recently, we were surprised at the number of insects—especially butterflies—we found still active—though as of yesterday morning, I still had a hummingbird at my dooryard feeder. 

I've spent today mostly inside, working at the desk, looking out the window and wishing I could be casting for smallmouth bass in the sparkling pools, or driving some rural backroad in search of that perfect red maple for a photo. A couple of hours from now I'll have to head into the city to attend the monthly board-of-directors meeting of the area's community health centers.

Alas, there's always something needing doing; a necessary bit of work, a task best not put off any longer, a meeting to attend—something which takes time and energy and is important, which nevertheless also gobbles up another small piece of your finite allotment of life. That isn't a complaint, merely an observation—a sort of self-reminder to pick and choose wisely when agreeing to such matters.

I well know I'm luckier than most in the amount of free time I have to spend any way I want. Honest, I don't take such a blessing lightly. But I also must admit that it's never enough…especially not in October, when the days are mild, the river gleams, country byways beckon, and sunlight shines golden-green through riverside leaves.

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