Fall is a beloved season of transition when the highly charged summer months are behind us and we ease into the change of pace that comes with winter. A walk out of doors, through rustling leaves and browning plants, we are reminded of the bounty of the natural world. The flora and fauna that selflessly showed up for duty in spring, and stayed to delight our senses in summer, have completed their cycle and are now bowing their autumnal adieu.

On a recent afternoon of putting gardens to bed, I came across a beautiful bird's nest. Carefully crafted from twigs, mud, and pine needles it had been built with the singular purpose of sheltering its newly hatched inhabitants. Vacated months ago, it had completed its mission and was readying its return to the elements of the earth. I started thinking of the parallels between the nests of twigs and mud and the homes we make from lumber and cement.