“Smoky Mountain Autumn”— photo by K. L. Wood
As leaves begin to lose their chlorophyll-green and reveal their true colors, we enter the most vibrant season of the year. Several years ago, this struck me as the perfect analogy for what happens with some people as they enter their own “golden” years. I’ve seen the spirits of older people shine through, even as their physical selves begin to fade, far brighter and more beautiful than any mere physical attractiveness could hope to be.
I wrote this observation into a poem four years ago and, if you’ve read it before, I pardon your indulgence as I share it once more.
Revelation
And with Autumn comes change,
green leaves casting off their homogeneous cloaks,
revealing true colors, no longer in hiding,
but shimmering forth in singular beauty,
unleashed with the freedom of “what’s there to lose?”
***
I’ve known people akin to the leaves in the Fall,
drawing near to their earthly demise.
They cast off the uniform safety-in-numbers,
unabashed as their spirits break through their firewalls,
flash-flooding among us with stained glass impressions,
prismatic effusions of vibrance and fervor,
imprinting true colors onto the world’s stage,
then bursting the ties of their old earthly bounds
and blazing away into heaven.
Kate with 91-year-old Mama, Mother’s Day 2015
—Thanks for stopping by. Y’all come back, now! (And let your true colors shine forth.)
Kate