away from here

where the setting sunlight is filtered across the hillside sloping away,
treetops, and tall grass until all their green is replaced by yellow and red
where you know a white pine not by counting five needles,
but by the way the wind soughs through it
where the distant sound of small waves
lapping the shore wakes you with its sigh
where contented red sunset silhouettes murmur, sip coffee,
while the cries of loons echo
when the stars wheel coolly above and the fire has consumed cares
and burns smokily low and the fading embers reflect redly in your eyes

Evening Dispatch from the Lion of the Genesee

It is a popular activity in this part of New York to complain about living here. If you ask a local to describe how they feel about residing here you will most likely first hear about "high taxes." It seems that a flood of ink has been spilled over taxes in Upstate New York, enough to drown all other considerations of the region's overwhelmingly exceptional benefits.

Fortunately those of us that live here and are paying attention know the truth; if you don't spend your time grubbing in the till you will discover yourself in one of the the most idyllic places on Earth.

While our current home is no Walden, either in size or quiet solitude it often has a transcendental beauty in the evening. Long shadows thrown across the yard by the low sun; Gold Finches chirupping quietly to each other in the trees while Baltimore Orioles cackle.

In the vegetable garden beans and corn have sprouted, breaking out of the earth. With simple tending they will turn sunlight, air, water, and soil into food. We are partners with them - we provide them sustenance and they will sustain us. Fortunately in the Realm of the Genesee there is usually just the right amount of rainfall and sunlight. If there is ever a growing season without enough rain, the largest freshwater lake ecosystem on the planet is nearby.

A Blue Jay visits the nearby cherry tree inspecting the crop. The Jay hops from branch to branch turning the clusters of green cherries over to see if any are ripe. The cherries aren't near ready yet, but a variety of species remain vigilant. If the Jays don't take all of them before they are ready a small flock of Cedar Waxwings will make a rare visit, to gorge on what is probably more than their fair share.

Spring flowers are now several weeks past, but early summer flowers are at their peak. The petals of Red and Pink Peonies are translucent in the ruddy evening light. The sun's last rays are caught in the top branches of the Poplar trees, leaves turning gold; with the lengthening days come long evenings. Night doesn't fall, rather twilight steals in on cool air. The stars appear stealthily as the indigo sky darkens. Now the Poplar leaves twist and flicker in the slight breeze.

There may be more beautiful places than here, but not this evening. It's a shame that so many of the region's inhabitants won't see the beauty around them; their blindness imposes a tax on their lives far greater than any monetary value.