"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower."
French Novelist
1913 - 1960
My wife and I were sitting on the back porch today enjoying the autumn morning. Autumn is my favorite month. If I had to rank the seasons from most favorite to least, here is my ranking: Autumn, Spring, Winter, Summer. What is your favorite season? As artists, writers and creative leaders, we are affected by the seasons. I studied and wrote exclusively haiku for seven years and the key to understanding haiku lies in the seasons. Many of us have lost touch with the seasons. We live in heated and air-conditioned buildings where the environment is controlled. The further we get from the farms and the fields, the more we lose touch with the individual nature of each season. I like winter because it cleans the cobwebs out of my brain. I love spring because of the renewal and rebirth. Summer with its heat overwhelms me. My brain melts once the temperature gets above 75 degrees. Autumn, though, brings me back to myself and I reflect on the importance of life.
This quote from Camus, the French novelist, caught me by surprise this morning. The phrase, "Every leaf is a flower," makes me see the world anew and I find it to be true.
