Maple leaf's end

Fallen
London, ON, October 2010

About this photo: This is one of my favorite photos of the year. Do you have one lurking in your files, too? How's about two? Or more? Click here if you'd like to share.

It's always sad to see the brilliant colors of autumn give way to crunchy, far-from-perfect leaves underfoot. When the bare trees cast forlorn shadows over endless stretches of leaf-choked lawns, you kind of wish for the color to return.

But that circle of life moves in only one direction, so you've got to work with what you've got. And when this one, withered leaf blew across the hotel parking lot, I knew it made no sense to wait for something brighter or less pockmarked. We had come to this.

So I hung back from my wife and kids, pre-set the camera to manual and tried to guess the necessary settings with my fingers as I sat down cross-legged on the pavement and lined up the shot. Sure, my wife was mortified and the kids tried to disown me. But if I didn't end up with a Michelin tread pattern running diagonally up my back, I figured I stood a pretty decent chance of capturing something worth remembering.

As the year ticks down to its inevitable end, I find myself thinking about what we lose along the way, and whether we're doing enough to hold onto the resulting memories after they're gone.

Your turn: What does this photo make you feel?