Fallen leaves

Fallen Leaves, Lexington, MA, November 2005, Pentax Optio 555, Exposure 1/25 sec @ f4.4, ISO 200, no flash, © Steven Crisp

I asked the leaf whether it was scared because it was autumn and the other leaves were falling. The leaf told me, "No. During the whole spring and summer I was very alive. I worked hard and helped nourish the tree, and much of me is in the tree. Please do not say that I am just this form, because the form of leaf is only a tiny part of me. I am the whole tree. I know that I am already inside the tree, and when I go back to the soil, I will continue to nourish the tree. That's why I do not worry. As I leave this branch and float to the ground, I will wave to the tree and tell her, 'I will see you again very soon.'"

That day there was a wind blowing and, after a while, I saw the leaf leave this branch and float down to the soil, dancing joyfully, becuase as it floated it saw itself already there in the tree. It was so happy. I bowed my head, and I knew that we have a lot to learn from the leaf.

Quoted from Thich Nhat Hanh, Essential Writings, 2001, p. 65.