Before we moved here, I always thought that if I ever bought a house in Berkeley, I’d want a Japanese maple. And then we found our little place. This tree is around forty years old, and nearly every window in our house looks out at it. I love how this tree visually marks the seasons for us even from inside our home. I adore it year-round, though fall is its most spectacular show.

In the car, Elan and I were talking about the autumn color show that’s taken over Berkeley. I said, “now that the leaves are turning colors, they’ll start falling.”

He thought about it for a moment, then pronounced: “The wind is their haircut.”

Nicely put, my dear.