Autumn enjoyment

As I sit at my computer, I look at a live oak tree with maybe a quarter of the straggly orange-ish leaves left hanging on. They appear dull and lifeless, but they are tenacious. They are hanging on. Earlier this season, as the leaves began to turn colors, I reveled in their beauty. I liked watching the leaves dance across the street as they fell. There are three trees with yellow leaves just outside my back patio.  All the other neighbors have pine trees (boring, in my book!) but God placed me here with these beautiful yellow-leafed trees. As I would eat breakfast, the sun would bathe those yellow leaves in golden sunlight, making the yellow even more beautiful. This fall is my first in this home, so the scene would excite me each morning. The front tree dropped leaves on my lawn and driveway, so as I went to the mailbox, I would drag my feet through the dry leaves and hear that inimitable sound and enjoy the smell of warm, dry leaves.
Autumn has been my favorite season since high school days in Maine when the air turned crisp, the leaves put on their magic show changing colors, and the days got shorter. I got married in October one year and thought it was the best season for a wedding. Friends introduced us to picking apples, so that added to my joy of Fall. The cool air revs me up and I get energized! Sleeping with a window open is another favorite for me. 
But today, as I look out an upstairs window, I see a naked lawn and driveway where the neighborhood maintenence guys came yesterday and sucked up the leaves with their big vacuum.   I don't like boring (clean) driveways and lawns.