Swaying like a leaf

       Wide green maple leaves swayed on long slender branches graceful as the neck of a grey heron...or a pink flamingo ,perhaps .Up and down,side to side like a sail boat loose upon a large blue wave might well do.Beyond,a wind continued to blow from the west,the direction of the mountains, pulsing like the secret heartbeat in a vast wilderness.Smelling of fir and cedar.Gently at first,then gusting strongly,then dropping to a dreadful calm.

        West of my position also stood the midday Sun.Orange and high, above a tree shrouded mountain side.I knew the Sun would drop below this very mountaintop within the hour.Already I could feel a chilly bite to the August air.Lending an uncertainty to the old summer's hold upon it.Nothing lasts forever though.I turn my gaze upwards and can see blue sky through the maple canopy.Crouching,I unsling my pack and lower it to the ground.I enjoy the last of the days sun almost as much as I enjoy my Jamaican rum.(to be continued)