Leaf Jumpers

Carole Gerber and Leslie Evans

Leaf Jumpers Carole Gerber Illustrated by Leslie Evans We watch a soft wind shake the trees. It lifts the leaves and sets them free. Released, they flutter through the air, drifting downward gracefully. We run to catch the falling leaves. We smell their smells and touch their veins. Bright jewels from the crowns of trees . . . We trace their shapes. We say their names. Red maple’s broad and pointed leaves flame bright and vivid as a match. The sugar maple’s leaves are orange, like pumpkins in a pumpkin patch. Stubby fingers, brown as dirt, reach from the slender white oak leaf. The basswood’s glowing yellow leaves are shaped like hearts with little teeth. The birch leaf, oval as an egg, falls sunnyside upon the ground. Willow leaves turn yellowgreen and hang from limbs that all curve down. The ginkgo’s wavy golden leaf is shaped just like a little fan.