Petrichor
Before the leaves begin to fall, along the river and into the woods we walk, some dampness in the ground from the previous days downpour but still firm from those long remembered, sun-baked days of summer.
A sense of green prevails and, in the air, the earthy scent of wet soil and vegetation being slowly warmed by the autumn sunshine.
A shaft of light breaks through the canopy and shines like a spotlight on ground-cover plants that will soon be gone, their last hurrah before hibernations embrace. A tree, the trunk silhouetted by the same beam, stands strong by the footpath and adds structure and presence to our woodland idyll.
And then we move on.
Rejoining the track and turning the corner, away and beyond, the moment spent.
