December

Advent has come almost hastily upon us; I could swear that yesterday it was August 14th, or something. Most of the trees are nearly bare, even here in my rather overheated area; most of the exceptions seem to be oak trees, which seem to cling to their leaves a bit longer. A couple weeks ago we hit the high point for all the colors.

I got back from a walk a few minutes ago, and as I was walking by the creek near our park, I saw some golden leaves clinging to some very high branches. I am not well-versed enough in trees to know what kind they were, but the leaves, with the white sun shining through them, floating against a blue sky, made me think of Lothlórien. To me, at any rate, the sun looks white during a winter afternoon. What a beautiful afternoon (now evening) it is; the sun was very bright, and there were scarcely any clouds in the sky, only a breathless few wisps. A cool breeze, not quite chilly, trembled in the air. I like this weather better than any other, except maybe snow.