Padding the Path

The red and yellow maple leaves crunched underfoot as they swirled around and fell in front of me.   The pine needles created a thick blanket that swished and squished as I walked over it.  No matter where I walked recently, the way was covered with red and yellow leaves and orange needles. Tis another sign of late fall.  I admit that I love the sounds of the leaves and needles as I walk over them.  The swishing, crunching and squishing take me back to when I was in kindergarten.  My mom and I lived with my maternal grandparents for three months before joining my father for his lecture tour and finishing my school year tutored by my parents.  During those three months with Grandpa and Grandma, I would walk home from McKinley Elementary School, searching out every pile of leaves I could find.  It's quite fine with me for my path to be padded, for no matter my age, I still seek out those piles of leaves, simply to hear their great sound under my feet.  This fall, I'll shed the adult responsibilities and worries once again and become my five-year-old self.