Ep 83. The Fall of the Leaf

In this episode, we compare the seasons of leaves to cycles of our lives-  a theme of my upcoming book, Lesson of the Leaf. And the wisdom, healing, and growth that come from observing the rhythms of nature and our gardens. 

We chat about The Fall of Freddie the Leaf, the classic book by Leo Buscaglia that provides comfort and inspiration to children explaining the cycle of life, and while leaves drop to the ground, their purpose doesn't end.   

 Link to Related Stories:
 The Fall of a Leaf

The Lesson of the Leaf

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I'd love to hear about your garden and nature stories. And your thoughts about topics for future podcast episodes. You can email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.com. Thanks so much for tuning in :^)

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Thank you for sharing the garden of life,

Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden Designer

Garden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com 

More about the Podcast and Column:

Welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights, and Discoveries.

It's not only about gardens; it's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learned from mother nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So, let's jump in in the spirit of learning from each other. We have lots to talk about.

Thanks for tuning in, Mary Stone
Garden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com
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Transcript

Ep 83 The Fall of the Leaf

Sat, Nov 19, 2022 4:10PM • 8:45

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

leaves, leaf, garden, life, tree, fall, book, beech, colors, part, freddie, grow, bereavement, grief, spring, wisdom, gardening, delights, mary stone, ask mary stone, garden dilemmas

SPEAKERS

Mary Stone

Mary Stone  00:00

Hello fellow lovers of all things green. I'm Mary Stone, and welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights and Discoveries. It's not only about gardens, it's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learned from mother nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So let's jump in in the spirit of learning from each other. We have lots to talk about. 

Mary Stone  00:26

Hello there, it's Mary Stone on another chilly screened porch. We actually had some I'll say frozen stuff from the sky last night before the rain fell. It is coming to that time of year and I'm a little sad that I didn't take advantage of my sprouted spider plants that I used in the window boxes to decorate them. I had intended to bring them inside to use them as gifts. And, boy, we had a deep freeze and I didn't do it quickly enough. So it makes me a little sad, but there's more baby spiders to harvest off my other plants. 

Mary Stone  01:01

Thanks to those of you that reached back about the last column about pawpaw trees. I had the funniest email from my singing buddy at the Karen Ann Quinlan Home for Hospice Ken Roberts, who wrote me-- been listening to your latest podcast. Now I know what a real pawpaw is. I always thought it was somebody's grandfather- laugh out loud. Anyway, isn't that cute? So thank you, for the others too that never heard of a paw paw tree. It was fascinating to learn about, wasn't it? 

Mary Stone  01:31

And the invitation that I asked about last time about helping me by previewing some of the chapters in my upcoming book led to this story I'd like to share today, and it starts like this. 

Mary Stone  01:42

Hello fellow listeners and readers. Thanks to those who reached back with curiosities about my book underway. The working title is The Lesson of the Leaf. Its theme is maneuvering through overlapping losses that happen in the later seasons of our lives. For some they come early, I hope to share the healing and growth that comes from observing and learning from the rhythms of nature and our gardens. (You may recall that we talked about the Lesson of the Leaf in Episode 13 of the podcast and I invite you to revisit that or listen if you haven't done so already. It has a very special meaning to me. Because the wisdom comes from my brother Bill.)

Mary Stone  02:24

 Leaves have a cycle much like our lives. There's a respite spot I used to frequent and living in Boonton, New Jersey, it was the early summer of my life. I'd lie back atop a picnic table at the top of the Tourne Park, cooling down from a run there. I'd marvel at the unfolding leaves against the blue sky in early spring. Virgin leaves. Each time they grow a bit bigger. They're tender to the touch when new. Then they toughen up as they grow, preparing themselves for the sweltering heat ahead. (Isn't it true? Have you ever touched baby new leaves emerging they are just the softest little things so cute.) 

Mary Stone  03:04

In the thick of summer, leaves begin to show signs of endurance holes from insects, bumps or browning from fungus and wounds from deer browsing on those low enough to be reached. As late summer looms, a few leaves shift in color, some entirely so then dropped to the ground early, ready to serve their next purpose to fertilize our dear earth. Then the other leaves join them in the fall shifting in a sequence of colors. First yellow followed by orange and ending with red leaves. It's during the mid-fall season when all the colors overlap that we enjoy the peak color performance. The ideal conditions for stunning fall colors are a moist growing season, followed by a dry fall with sunny warm days and cool nights. But the weather isn't always ideal. Just like the rhythms in our lives. 

Mary Stone  03:57

Some leaves never are part of the rainbow but turn straight to tawny tan or brown. Then they fall. Others cling to the trees until spring. When the budding new leaves release the old. I'm thinking of oak leaves and beech leaves, they tend to hold on to those branches and rustle in the wind. The sound of rustling leaves as they fall that crunch as you walk. Rain comes and they soften and begin to smell like peas, inviting worms and others to help them decompose back into the earth, bringing all the nutrients from the sun and the rains they absorbed.

Mary Stone  04:34

 In the fall of our lives we see things shifting as we age. But what appears to be declining is part of our growth and we cannot force it and we cannot prevent it. Just as we cannot make seeds sprout an early spring. If we look at our changes as we mature, accepting them as part of the cycle of nature -  of life that returns each season with a new season of growth. We understand that we're part of this life and therefore, always will be because the cycle of life never ends. 

Mary Stone  05:06

There's a classic children's book titled The Fall of Freddie the Leaf. I came upon it long ago while waiting to speak with my grief counselor Diana Sebzda, who became the director of bereavement. I call her the queen of grief. At the Joseph T. Quinlan Bereavement Center before retiring this year, she'll forever remain my friend. And while the book by Leo Buscaglia is meant for children, it's a story for all ages, as the subtitle describes. While Freddie the leaf feared letting go of his tree, his friend Daniel explained that we don't fear spring turning into summer, and we don't fear fall. So why should we fear the winter season of our lives? 

Mary Stone  05:49

Freddie was the last leaf on the tree. And when he finally let go, he had the most magnificent soft landing into the snow that felt warm. And for the first time, he could see the whole tree and felt proud to be part of it. Wishing all of you a blessed Thanksgiving. Garden Dilemmas, asked Mary Stone.com. 

Mary Stone  06:12

Isn't that a beautiful story, in such wisdom, I actually have a copy of the 25th anniversary of that book. And how I ended up meeting Diana Sebzda was when I was going through the thick time of grief that occurred after my brother Bill passed away, whose wisdom is still very much with me. And I have to actually just share a little bit of a road walk I had a couple of Saturdays ago when the leaves were just blowing off the trees. It was a windy day, bright blue sky with some patches of puffy clouds. And I looked up and there literally was a cascade of oak leaves flying around. I was holding my palms up hoping one would land in the palm of my hand and, and I just couldn't help myself. I grabbed my phone to get a photograph of the snow of leaves. And as I was doing that, I could just hear my brother's voice, put down the device, enjoy the moment. And as I did that, a beech leaf no kidding that an oak leaf landed on my shoulder and the winds just kind of stuck it there. So I grabbed that leaf and I stuffed it in my pocket and it just made me feel so good. Just to imagine you know that energy from my dear brother. Yes, indeed. And I did take that leaf and put it inside my book. I have a mock up of my cover. Just to know visualize where it's going to be in my life and hopefully yours when it's published. I stuck that beach leaf in there. I treasure it. And I hope you treasure the memories of the loved ones that are no longer in your life on this side because they are very much in our hearts and in that way they live on. 

Mary Stone  07:48

So thanks so much for coming by. I always look forward to our time together and I hope you have as well and if so I always appreciate if you could pass the podcast forward to a family member or a friend or two so more can join us and learning and growing in the garden of life. Meanwhile, never forget that love never ends or dies that always lives on in our hearts. Thanks so much. Have a glorious day. 

Mary Stone  08:15

You can follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook or online at Garden Dilemmas.com and on Instagram at hashtag Mary Elaine Stone. Garden Dilemmas, Delights and Discoveries is produced by Alex Barling. Thanks for coming by. I look forward to chatting again from my screen porch. And always remember to embrace the unexpected in this garden of life. Have a great day.