Evergreen

I see the sun setting early, nestling in to rest behind the hills.
I see the barren trees—once bright and bursting with fiery color—now surrendering their leaves to the cold ground below.

I hear the brown leaves crunching underfoot; they litter my path as I walk.
I hear the geese overhead making their southward flight and my heart longs to sprout wings and join them.

I smell the leaves below, giving off an earthy smell as they slowly become one with the ground.
I smell wood burning in the distance, keeping hearts and homes warm inside.

I feel the cold air nipping at my skin, bringing a mild sting to my cheeks.
I feel a sense of sadness filling my heart as I think of the long, dark nights and bitter, cold days ahead.

I want to run, to fly away somewhere warm, where the sun always shines and I can feel it kissing my shoulders.
I want to stop the seasons from their constant changing, to pause time and stay suspended in the beauty, warmth and plenty of an eternal flowering summer...

Then I see the evergreen.

The evergreen is constant, steady, faithful through every season.
The evergreen doesn't draw attention to itself with flowering beauty in the spring. It doesn't herald the fall with a bright, fiery splash of color.

The evergreen is strong and hardy, withstanding even the harshest of winters.
The evergreen is the only glimpse of beautiful green I will see in the bleakness of a grey and white winter. A sign of hope and a constant in a world of change.

And my heart pauses and I hear, "Be the evergreen."

Steady.
Sure.
Constant.
Strong.

Alive in every season of life, even the difficult ones.

Ever, green.