The Road That Remains

We are always moving toward something. A destination, a border, a change in the weather. We pack our bags and we leave, convinced that the act of going is the same as arriving. But the road does not care for our intentions. It only asks that we keep our eyes on the curve ahead. In the north, the trees turn brittle before the frost settles. They shed their weight, preparing for the long silence. We watch them and we think we understand the cycle, yet we are always surprised when the color fades. We want to hold the warmth, to pin it down, to keep the horizon from shifting. But the earth has its own pace. It does not wait for us to catch our breath. It simply waits for the next season to begin. Is it the journey that changes us, or is it the things we leave behind in the dust?

Tisha Clinkenbeard has captured this quiet transition in her image titled Talimena Drive in the Fall. The road winds through the trees like a question waiting for an answer. Does the path lead you home, or further away?