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Botanical Stanza

Writer's picture: Ahsan JamilAhsan Jamil


Although Hudson Valley has its own reputation in terms of its scenery and landscape, the colors of October are uniquely magical and mesmerizing. With green trees turning red, pink, maroon, yellow, and off-white, the valley resembles an Indian bride. Where the river, lakes, and the sky add blue to the scene. Black curvy country roads, along with the yellow stripes, snake through the hills around the Hudson. It seems as if purple asters, multicolored dahlia, yellow mums, and dominating stonecrop sedums are the actual dwellers in the front yards of the country homes. Butterflies, usually monarchs, add another version to the driveways of these beautiful homes. Deep under such colorful transitions of the weather, the sad story of separation and withdrawal goes on in full swing. 


Seven Lakes Road, a parkway in Hudson Valley is place to visit in all seasons yet drive in October is one of its kind. In my SUV, the idiocentric melody of Jagjit Singh, ہاتھ چھوٹے بھی تو رشت نہیں چھوڑا کرتے, plays, which inspires me to write this piece: “Separation shouldn’t end the relationship.”


Autumn is the season of separation. The detachment between trees and leaves. Migration of the seasonal birds, and hibernation of obligate hibernators. Dormancy of so many species. No one else celebrates departure as trees and leaves do. They try to form a colorful landscape, as does the rainbow in the sky. 


“Autumn is the second spring when every leaf is a flower.”

Albert Camus 



Trees tell us that on the grounds of mutual respect, how beautiful letting go can become. The journey of the falling leaf is another life it lives and that is the life of freedom and wonder. 


“Autumn leaves shower like gold, like rainbows, as the winds of change begin to blow.”

Dan Millman


A leaf lives through another life of service after it departs the stem. It hugs the soil that fed it for months. It lets go of the sun that it always pursued and persuaded. 


Yet it never stops serving its family. From dust, it comes and to dust, it goes. It eventually becomes fertilizer

to add flavor to the soil, to the roots, and to the seeds. It rides the air experiencing flying. It tries to learn dance. It spends the nights on pavements, on benches, and on the windshields of cars.  


“Fall is my favorite time of the year. To me, it exemplifies the victory of the spirit over matter.”

Stephen King


The tree on the other hand sheds its cover and tries to stand naked, fearlessly. As if it didn’t sin. It proves that it stands on its roots. When we long for warm clothes, it dares to take them off. It accepts to face the freezing winter with its open branches. The tale of an autumn tree is a beautiful story of shades, stripes and stripping. Autumn is a beautiful stanza of botanic poetry. The fall season is a melody of color and closure. And Hudson Valley is a great stage of nature to launch the equinox in October. 


“Inside of us, there’s a continual autumn. Our leaves fall and are blown over the water.”

Rumi



Credits 

Seven Lakes Drive Harriman & Bear Mountain 

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Images: Ahsan Jamil 


By

Ahsan Jamil 

Golfer, Blogger, Entrepreneur, Author, Poet, Wanderer, Photographer, Rebel. 


Website: Golfaij.com

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