You may know by now that I was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, where average annual temperatures hover around the 25 degrees Celsius mark and Winter daytime temperatures rarely fall below 15. There are basically two seasons in SA – Summer and Winter. As Winter winds down, temperatures are already reaching the early 20’s and with Autumn’s mild temperatures, the changing of seasons are not entirely noticeable. 

My family and I moved to Canada in 2022 and we have enjoyed experiencing four distinct seasons. Fall, with its display of spectacular colours, is a firm favourite. I love Fall for the rich sensory experience it offers. The brilliance of colours that burst in beams of sunlight. The musky smell of leaves with their humble earthiness. The crunching sound of steps and whooshing of breezes. 

During our first Fall, I was in awe of how many colours leaves can turn.

From sunset orange to fiery red
Lime green, yellow or pink instead

I remember walking a trail in North Bay’s beautiful Boreal Forest and staring as a funnel of leaves swirled in the breeze, then swayed elegantly before landing on a bed of red and pink leaves that marked the trail before us. I could all but picture a beautiful bride making her way down the aisle, her white gown kicking up leaves as she swishes past, wisps of leaves swirling about her head.  

The scientific explanation for this picturesque season has to do with the process of photosynthesis. Leaves absorb sunlight so that chloroplasts within the cells of leaves can use it to produce food for the tree. Chloroplasts contain chlorophyll which provides leaves with their pigment, giving them their green colour. The stronger the sun, the brighter the green. As days get shorter and the sun gets further from the earth, the amount of sunlight is reduced. Leaves can no longer produce food for the tree. As the chlorophyll breaks down, more chemicals such as carotene, xanthophylls and anthocyanins appear, giving leaves orange, yellow and red pigments. 

As we appreciate this beautiful process of change, I like to be reminded that significant changes in our own lives, while they can be uncomfortable and even scary at times, can result in beautiful transformations.