Autumn's other face

The autumnal scene out my window this morning is nothing short of magnificent. Sun shining brightly. Gentle breeze. Fig tree in the foreground. Mostly denuded of leaves. Dotted with a handful of waxeyes enjoying the absolute last of the figs. Liquid Amber tree just behind. Clothed in the season's variegated coat. Ranging in colour from stubbornly green through to yellow, orange and red. The grass below both trees covered in a generous carpet of leaves. Food for the ground which has nurtured their growth through the previous months. A sort of 'you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours' arrangement. A pot of rosemary, tinged blue with flowers. Purple salvia, on its last legs. Agapanthus, one of Waitakere City Council's banned plants, comfortably nestled up against the fence. Long, narrow, bright green leaves surrounding half-dried seedheads on sturdy stems.....Then, as if to remind me that it is autumn after all, the sky completely clouds over and rain begins to fall. Autumn's other face.

Photograph/Waxeye by Liz March