Mirroring Nature

The mountain stream-fed
lake mirrors in its placid
tranquility the autumn-burned
foliage that nature has so
artfully groomed to maturity
as a background screen,
patiently awaiting this
October day to flaunt the
timeless beauty of a scene
whose fleeting presence in
the transition between seasons
tantalize the human eye with
form, texture and colour
that has motivated the artistic
souls of the authentically
talented to paint into
landscapes as treasured
as nature's fleeting landscapes;
the paintings rare treasures,
vastly outliving the originals.
The originals costing the eye
of the observer nothing to enter
that briefly enchanted world.
The paintings, superbly emulating
the reality, carrying a price only
the privileged may access,
successfully mirroring nature.