A Little Bit of Autumn in Sedona, AZ

As autumn-starved as I have been lately, my craving was satisfied today in Sedona, thanks to my habit of looking upward into trees' leafy crowns.  I am not sure what types of trees these are, although I think the first kind here might be cottonwoods. These trees are absolutely beautiful...and a much needed touch of serenity upon my life. Enjoy.

Lastly, throughout Tlaquepaque today were autumnal arrangements like this, above, complete with plump, fiery orange pumpkins.

Saying Goodbye to Chicago, Part Four: Autumn

Maple branch in autumn, UIC, Chicago, IL

My favorite season in Chicago was always autumn. After a hot, stifling, humid summer, autumn would arrive and provide great relief. Mornings with the window open, listening to a cool breeze blowing through trees and rustling their leaves, would always evoke feelings of gratitude. So would the slow transformation of leaf color, from green to gold, or to fiery orange or red, or to a cinnamon-like brown. When I was kid, autumn was the season when my family and I would go pick apples at Wauconda Orchards, now long closed. When I lived in the desert, autumn was one of the things I missed the most. Going forward, after my move back to the desert, I will need to identify suitable locations for taking an autumn vacation.

This photo I took last fall, while walking around the campus of the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). It was a misty day, which was good for the photograph, as it obscured the background enough to effectively offset the clarity of this fiery maple branch in the foreground. I always wanted to take an autumn photo as vividly colorful as this. Enjoy!