One day as I sat on the porch on a warm autumn day, admiring the warm ablaze colors of the woods, I watched leaves falling from the trees. As the gentle winds blew swiftly, the leaves blew away from the branches in the direction of the wind.

Tossed further from their anchor, I watched some floating down beneath the trees, some were blown further away, like escorting the winds, they disappeared in the distance, God knows where they fell.

Then, like an obsession with the falling leaves that autumn, again sitting by a stream in the park- I watched the leaves fall, but only this time, my concentration was focused on the ones that fell on the water. I watched them disappear as the water flowed, carrying them in the distance, clear from my view.

I couldn't help it, but drew some lessons from the falling leaves. Fixated on the picture from my porch, I thought of the leaves that fell straight to the ground, that it will one day wither and enrich the soil around the trees. Like humans, if we remain close to our origin, be it God, family, heritage or culture, the list goes on, not only will we enrich it, but pass on the legacy and life goes on.

Then the ones that blew along, escorting the powering force of the wind, fell at least somewhere. I would suggest the landed on the pathways, open fields, highways and bridge. Imagine them being trampled on, on hard pathways, reduced to sand, and crushed on the highways. Not forgetting the ones that get stuck under the bridges- as they freeze from the ice cold winters, melt in spring and carry on blowing, until they end up trampled on, reduced to nothing at the end.

Like humans, when we are carried by the winds of life, genuine and gentle they might look, but we end up disappointed or lose our belief and faith in life. Worse if there is no one to gather us and put us back to good use. Many are the times we seek shelter in the comfort zones. The comfort zone are, but temporary solutions, we are left out, and blown away when another wind blows by.

Last but not least, are the leaves that were carried away riding on the gentle tides of the flowing stream. We are carried away by the mainstream in life- convinced by evolving cultural trends, everyone is doing it, everyone has it, we succumb to the pressure of a wrong crowd.

But, unlike the leaves that will continue the eco- balance of nature where ever they land, we fail to gather ourselves to be counter productive again, unless if we are surrounded by people who cares. Like the leaves that fell under the trees, I want to fall beneath the care of my God, or better yet, on his palms.

Learn more about this author, Winfridah Mcekeni.
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