Light captured the brilliant colors of the leaves
as the gentle breeze pushed
and tugged in quiet mystery.
Vibrant skies held the background in wonder,
Bluish greens and feathery whites
Moved and mingled in unspoken harmony.

This was the childhood magic
I had taken for granted.
It was here, along crumbled walkways
In my small hometown in Maine,
Streets lined with Oak and Maple, sentinels
Along the roads, I walked daily to school.

Was I so absorbed with my duties and classwork,
So involved with myfriends that I never
Looked around, Never noticd
The magnificence of exploding colors?
How easy it is to leave beauty unnoticed,
Scenes so common to our liveds.

Today, 30 years later, my eyes are open.
I see and wonder at the beauty of shapes and colors.
A hammock filled with fallen memories of summer.
The ground ablaze with nature's mystery
Beckoning one to lift those delicate wonders
And spread them to the sky.

To throw them high and
Watch them float to the ground.
Each one searching a resting place,
A colorful collage, a masterpiece
To hold in the heart,
Never again to forget.