I wore a perfume when I was a teenager that was called Golden Autumn. It had an earthy scent, maybe musky. It was my fall scent, one that I have not smelled for years.
This photo of the invasive species of grass, phragmites, that line the Lake Huron shoreline in front of Cedar Bluff reminds me of that smell. Green and gold, luminous, yet mysterious.
The phragmites have invaded much of the shoreline and roadsides in the Thumb. The plant grows tall and looks like oversized wheat. It has a long root with a pencil sharp point that wanders 20-30 feet away from the mother plant. Those agressive roots move a patch of phragmite quickly, enlarging and thickening the growth, choking out everything in its pathway.
But in this photo the gold of autumn shows through. Even in the invasive species, there is beauty. And memories of other autumns and their golden days.
Copyright 2011
Wanda Hayes Eichler
No comments:
Post a Comment