A Mountain Scrapbook

This weekend I had the immense and wonderful pleasure of packing into the car with my family and driving up the steep and amazing mountains of Colorado.  We went to see the leaves, and though I saw leaves, I saw a whole lot more. And so I will share with you the sights and beauties, through the art of words and photographs, in the hope that you might enjoy them with me too.

Each picture I took has its own little story to tell, so I shall let them do it in their own way.

"Once upon a time, there were mountains that stood big and strong in the hill-land of Colorado.  But people began to move there with saws and axes, horses and carts.  
They wanted to take a shortcut and move quickly through the mountains.  And so they started digging, blasting, and pushing their way through the hill, supporting it with heavy beams and strong logs.  And then the work was done;  noisy cars traveled through, whipping up dust, and stirring around dirt.  And still, after that once upon that time, the tunnel still stands.  I know, because I saw the light from the other side."

The floor of the forest is covered with a nice quilt of colorful leaves.  They keep the tree roots warm and tenderly tuck the vines and plants into their winter nap.  The leaves are all sizes, shapes, and hues fluttering down to the ground like snowflakes.  Maybe they are trying to be the snowflakes of autumn, knowing that they will never survive to the cold white of winter.  The aspen trees observe this happening, shaking their heads in mirth.  And as they shake, more leaves fall to the distant ground, floating and dancing on the chill mountain breeze.  The leaves are king, there in the woods, and they enjoy themselves, while they last...

"Home is behind, the world ahead,

And there are many paths to tread

Through shadow to the edge of night,

Until the stars are all the light.

Then world behind and home ahead,

We'll wander back and home to bed.

Mist and twilight, cloud and shade,

Away shall fade! Away shall fade!

~ J.R.R. Tolkien ~