Phenomenal fall foliage can stop you in your tracks

The score on my card is not what I’ll remember from a weekend enjoying my favorite hobby. 
Golf is my go-to getaway, as you’ll probably hear through repeated references in this space, but when the scenery is so spectacular it stops you in your tracks you have to tip your hat to Mother Nature and just soak it in.
Scarlet. Amber. Maroon. Crimson. Brown, with a leftover hint of green trying to hold on as long as it can. The seasonal landscape is indeed a treat for the eyes these days, a splash of splendid multi-colored fall foliage that makes you want to do anything and everything outdoors.
Autumn carries more gold in its pockets than all the other seasons, or so I’ve read over the years. By themselves, each of the various hues would be easy on the eyes, but when combined beneath a crisp blue sky the effect can be physical, as well as emotional. Breathing in the air and scenery is all part of a fall phenomenon meant to be cherished, embraced, shared, and repeated year after year.
New England boasts of its breath-taking fall foliage, as do folks in the Ozarks, Rocky Mountains and many scenic vistas throughout America. I’ve ventured to many of those sites over the years and left with indelible impressions, all good. I have to admit I’m a bit partial to Nebraska, where harvest adds an important visual and symbolic piece to the seasonal transition that makes the picture complete, at least for me. 
Here’s hoping all of you can find or make the time to hit the pause button and take a drive through the countryside before the colors start to fade, with no set destination other than peace of mind. 
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Here are a few more thoughts on the annual fall transition:
“There is something so special in the early leaves drifting from the trees, as if we are all to be allowed a chance to peel, to refresh, to start again.” — Ruth Ahmed
Or from Lauren Destefan, fall is “the time when everything bursts with its last beauty, as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale.”
KURT JOHNSON can be reached at kjohnson@ hamilton.net