There's A Delicate Nature To SpringBare aspen trees dusted with a touch of fresh snow in springtime.

There's a Delicate Nature to Spring

I love aspen trees. They grow straight and tall and they do it quickly. They also can grow in very dense forests that you can barely walk through. Unlike the oak trees I grew up with in Oklahoma, aspen trees lose all of their leaves every autumn. We call that "stick season" and it lasts through the winter until May or so.

Aspen forests represent a variety of moods for me. As they begin to leaf out in the spring they exude joy and freshness. As their leaves turn dark green into summer, they just seem kind of normal, the way I feel most days. As they change to their golden shades in the fall they seem exuberant like they're celebrating a great life.

Then comes "stick season". Bare aspen trees invite quiet contemplation. They're not really depressing but rather introspective.

During April and May, we usually get our moisture in the form of snow. At 9400' in Colorado, that's just the way it is. Sometimes we get measurable snow in every month of the year. Springtime in the Rockies brings multiple light flurries of snow that do a great job at decorating bare aspen forests. The dusting of white reminds me that the trunks and branches are not really white at all but a variety of shades of grey. The light snowfall adds a little contrast to an otherwise dull landscape.

"There's a Delicate Nature to Spring" celebrates springtime in the Colorado Rocky Mountains for me. This image makes me think of moods changing from quiet contemplation to the promise of future joys. I hope it makes you feel the same!