Blaze!

Today I went on a walk to the liquor store to see if I could stomach my minds ambition, and I kid you not, I saw a tree that looked like it was on fire but in leaf form!

I met this guy at Matt Patterson's Halloween party that told me that trees worship the sun, their life-giving force, and teach us how we are to worship God. Their leaves follow the sun as it moves through the day, reaching towards the sun (I think that's actually certain types of flowers, but I wasn't about to stop his theorizing). Then in the fall, they turn the color of flames to reflect the sun, reminding us of purification, self-sacrifice and the cycles of death. In the winter they are colorless, leafless, mourning the loss of the sun, and in the spring they jump back to life and are re-born. The tree cannot live without the sun and, is trying to mimic it.

As I listened to it, I thought, "uh huh, definitely in the Bay Area. Thank you hippie Mister". But something resonated with me that I couldn't put my finger on until I saw this flaming tree today of oranges and reds and yellows. I put a fallen leaf in my purse hoping that next time I go searching in my purse for something on a grey and dreary day, I'll find a little bit of color again.

It is amazing how even the smallest amount of rain changes the way I see color, especially reds and greens. Have you ever watched a person with red hair as they walked outside on a grey day? I kid you not, their head stands out and makes the world a better place! I always swear I am going to re-dye my hair red when it rains and instead I end up watching "Moulin Rouge" or humming something from "The Little Mermaid".

I am thankful for something warm and color-infused in the middle of a murky grey. I have never been a great fan of grey. I know it's supposed to say "sophisticated" and "foundational" but to me is says "lethargy" and "dull".

I guess, what I am trying to say poorly is this- you never know what lies beneath the surface of a grey day. Although you might be particularly gloomy, someone else might be on a walk for the first time post-food poisoning discovering a flame-like tree, humming "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi?" and trying not to slip on a big grease puddle.

And that my friends is something you can put in your "Chicken Soup for the Soul" pipe and smoke!