"Oh good lord, enough of the leaves already!" they thought.

O.k., look. Autumn happens but once a year. I get more excited about the colour of the leaves than I do about Christmas. You don't have to run around and buy presents for the leaves. You don't have to plan a big family gathering because of the leaves. You don't have to bake ahead of time for the leaves.

I get a thrill out of seeing the leaves become so beautiful. Many, many years ago, I was in Nova Scotia and drove with a friend along the Cabot Trail which is a windy, circuitous road in Cape Breton. It was October and every time we went around another curve, it was like seeing a beautiful patchwork quilt. I know that when we retire, that is a goal I have for my husband and I, to drive the Cabot Trail when the leaves are perfect.

When I was little, my parents rented a big old brick farmhouse in the country. There was a chestnut tree with a swing and fall was my favourite time because of that tree. Chestnuts don't really put on a spectacular show with their leaves. But chestnuts are amazing! They are ensconced in green spiny coats until the fall when they drop to the ground and they start to split open to reveal a gorgeous shiny brown nut which separates into two parts. I collected many, many chestnuts as a little girl. My father drilled holes through them so I could string them into a rather chunky necklace.

When my daughter was very young, we would collect the prettiest leaves we could find and then press them flat between the pages of heavy books. Then I would iron them between waxed paper and we hung them in the window. I really love autumn.

I grew up as a child in the 70's. My parents had "harvest gold" appliances. Well, the washer and dryer were harvest gold. They weren't purchased as harvest gold appliances. They were used. My parents never bought new. The money just wasn't there. But then my father painted them. Yup, he painted them harvest gold. The kitchen was done in autumnal colours: olive green, harvest gold, rusty orange. I think earthy colours were ingrained into my soul from a young age. I am not a fan of blues or pinks, especially in decorating. But show me a warm brown, a deep gold, a dark sage green, I'm in!!

It is currently raining out. If we get any wind at all, we will lose many leaves. So, in honour of the leaves we have right now, here are some pictures I took on my way to work a couple of days ago. It was a little bit foggy, the kind of fog that hangs like individual low clouds over the land (yes, I know fog is low clouds) and the sun was starting to cut through. An ode to autumn colour, and I swear this is the end of showing you the leaves:

The end.