In appreciation.

I've spent many years now lamenting the loss of Autumn that came with my relocation to Florida. While many places enjoy fall foliage, a New England girl is hard-pressed to find any that can compete with the fiery blaze of leaves painted by Mother Nature in the northeast. Each Autumn, I recalled crisp October afternoons with trees holding their red and orange and golden leaves high against a vibrant blue sky, with those that have fallen, raked into enormous piles or scattered by the wind, left to gather into multi-colored drifts.

And I gave a cursory glance around me, dismissing the palm trees with a sigh.

A couple of weekends ago, I found myself wandering aimlessly around Disney property, taking in the sights & smiling at the Christmas decorations. I was crossing through the parking lot at the Contemporary, making my way toward the boat launch that would eventually take me over to the Wilderness Lodge. I turned my face upward to let the sunshine warm my cheeks, slightly rosy from the hint of an early December chill in the air when the unexpected caught just the corner of my eye. If I hadn't been intent on soaking in my surroundings that day, I might have missed it once again.

The sun was shining through the leaves on the trees, making them glow.

It caught my breath & carried it away on the breeze.

There it was: *my* Autumn. This beautiful place where I now live offers a more subtle version of my favorite season. The colors aren't as blazing, but they are warm & cheerful. The leaves don't make mountains--we don't have mountains in Florida anyway--but there are enough to crunch through, if you seek them out. And I hadn't. In eight Florida Autumns, I wistfully recalled what had been and failed to see the beauty before me as a result. It *isn't* the same, and yes, I will always love a New England Autumn better than any other, but the soft loveliness that arrives later & with less fanfare here on this peninsula can still be admired.

I just have to remember to turn my face upward, to seek it out, to appreciate what I have. The reds and the oranges will always be at their most magnificent against a vibrant blue...and when the tenth Autumn of my Florida residency rolls around, I won't forget the lesson I learned this year.