Reflections: Changing Seasons

I do a lot of driving in the early morning hours. Well, I say early, but maybe it's not early for some of you. I usually leave before, or just after 8am. 
Yesterday morning, as I drove the fifteen miles to pick up my grandson from his mom's, I got to thinking of the route I take every time. I love the drive. There is hardly any traffic, and the speed limit is a good pace. I get to indulge in the beauty of the mountains that surround me as I climb the one I am on.
Many people might think that this would be a boring drive, doing it every day as I do, but I would have to disagree. There is always the possiblity of a surprise or two along the way.

In the spring months, the colors change as new leaves burst forth with the unendless shades of greens, and as the spring months continue, flowers blossom and bring splashes of brightness along the way. As time advances into summer, there are the many sightings of deer, and elk, and the occasional cougar and bear, not to mention falcons and bald eagles soaring from tree to tree.

Autumn brings about the vividness of oranges, yellows, bronzes and the browns and sometimes a glimpse of red, as the trees prepare themselves for their own winter hibernation. Everyday there is a slight difference in the colours, vibrant and then slowly dulling as leaves fall from branches to cover the roots of the trees in a cozy quilt.

Then there comes the change that, to me is the most amazing. All of a sudden, it's like driving through a black and white photograph. Gone are the colours, and the shades of green become dark and not easily distinguished. The sky is often heavily coloured in greys, and it is like a whole different place.

We live in a temperate rainforest and so we have a lot of rain, and the snow doesn't often fall down in our valley, but stays on the mountain tops, like the frosting on a beautiful cake. This year, the change was made more pronounced because we did get a snowfall that has stayed more than 24 hours. The temperature stayed on the cold side and the snow didn't melt off the trees, instead, keeping them frosted with wedding cake white. This made the greens look black and made the drive a bit eerie to be honest.
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But, this too shall pass, and once more there will be new leaves and flowers and the cycle will start all over again. So it is never dull. We just need to learn to see the slight, everyday differences that result in dramatic changes.
Again, this was born out to me as I opened our front door to the cold blast of Arctic air that has paid us a visit this year. The mountain behind us, all shrouded in patches of dark and white, sparkled pink as the sun rose in all it's wintery glory. A beautiful omen to a beautiful day.