"October, or Autumnal Hints"

"October is the month of painted leaves.
Their rich glow now flashes round the world.
As fruits and leaves and the day itself
acquire a bright tint just before they fall,
so the year near its setting.
October is its sunset sky;
November the later twilight."
~Thoreau, 1862~

Henry David Thoreau sums up the splendor of the New England fall in his book, "October, or Autumnal Hints". Thoreau was born in Concord, Massachusetts in 1817 and died at the young age of 44 in 1862.


This book was written as he lay dying and views autumn not as the time for death and decay but "the passing away of one life is the making room for another".