Sugar Maples

 

The most spectacular fall colors come from sugar maples; the red and yellows, sometimes mixed with the diminishing green leaves, proved the ideal of what fall in the northeast United States is supposed to look like. In Shippensburg, there are two sugar maples, side by side along South Queen Street that I pass every morning on the way to campus. On a sunny autumn morning, coming over the rise of the bridge over the railroad tracks, the sun is at just the right angle to make the two trees stand out, highlighting the changing foliage for a few precious weeks. The trees are so compelling that even in the dead of winter, or the height of summer, I glance over to make sure they are thriving so that I can await the return of the annual display.