I have a bunch of questions for you

How do leaves know when it's time to fall? And they never fall alone - they go in small groups or not at all. How does that work? One wonders if the leaf lets hold of the tree or it's the tree that says Go. Now.

That presupposes the parting is not amicable. Perhaps the opposite is true, and it's a wrenching, horrid loss for the trees every spring. I prefer to think of it differently: the tree takes the role parental, and the leaves become the children, setting off for their next adventure. The...