Winter is still a long way off, but the leaves have been falling for several weeks now. Won’t be long before sweaters and jackets will be part of the morning routine … along with a steaming bowl of ...

The dead tree has no leaves. The leaves have been replaced by birds, hundreds of birds. This rainy afternoon, every branch is occupied. Black kites sit almost wing to wing along the tree’s bare limbs.

In my travels this past week I’ve seen a lot of catalpa trees covered with clusters of bell-shaped white flowers. Northern catalpas are native to this part of the country, but there are other catalpas ...