I chose this haiku because it immediately put an image in my mind. It took me back to the first time I stepped foot in Syracuse about four years ago in August. I was captivated by the scenery, especially by the sea of red leaves in autumn. It was really beautiful. The happy figure in the image reflects the way I feel whenever the seasons begin to change the leaves to red, orange, yellow.

The image is drawn using a mix of pencil and paint, and then edited digitally in Photoshop. I dotted the landscape with red trees and filled the sky with puffy clouds for the background. I wanted to enlarge the figure to show how great the autumn landscape in Syracuse can make a person feel.