I have no idea when some film director first conceived of and employed this  sequence of frames but once he did they were enthusiastically embraced by legions of those who followed.  And there is no sign that despite repeated usage, they will disappear from film making anytime soon.  They are intended either to:  1. Inject a deliberate element of mystery into a story or, 2. Keep an audience guessing, at least momentarily, about which character had just entered a scene.

By now you may have guessed the cinematic device that has proven so persistent and serviceable for all these many years.  Call it a “leg shot” if you will.  There’s no subtlety, little variation in how the scene is presented.  The camera reveals the legs of an individual and remains focused upon them for a period of time, depending upon what purpose it’s meant to serve.  If its intent is to tantalize and encourage us to wonder who we’re about to see, it will, after lingering upon the lower extremities, slowly begin to elevate until at last we’re offered a full-bodied subject.  Were we right?  Did we guess his or her identity?  Quite likely it was someone we hadn’t expected would appear.  The film maker with this delayed gratification technique has had his or her fun.  And we, the audience, have gone along with it, enjoyed the brief suspense.

In the other instance, the “leg shot” advances the story line, informing us that someone  is present and has undertaken certain actions, but then withholds the identity of that individual as the camera remains anatomically static, never elevates above the feet.  There’s but a slight chance viewers can determine who is involved here.  This is somewhat disappointing, even frustrating, as vital information is being deliberately withheld.

Will audiences ever tire of, and will directors finally retire, the “leg shot?”  Given that it’s been around so long, one is reluctant to predict its demise.  Besides, are there any other body parts that could better serve the purpose?

I’ve never given it much thought, but on this occasion, for some unexplained reason I did.  I’d watched it happen countless times but now I found myself staring out the window at two enormous maple trees in the courtyard, observing the leaves, as they do very Fall, come down.  For perhaps eight or ten minutes I stayed focused on the scene.

Questions I’d never considered came to mind – some interesting, others a trifle strange.  Have you ever thought about the following?  Are falling leaves to be viewed as an end or a beginning?  Why do some trees shed most of their leaves rapidly while others hold them much longer?  Are they competing against one another?  Which one wins – the tree losing its leaves first or the one that holds on to them longer?  Do trees regard their leaves as an adornment as we humans do, or as unwelcome camouflage, obscuring its permanent structure of sturdy trunks and graceful branches?  Is it in part good riddance – the leaves being a burden, or is there a sense of loss, of abandonment?  Do trees recognize there will be another crop arriving in  the Spring or  are they surprised when a new cycle begins?

Considering a single tree, is there a pattern or  sequence to  falling leaves?  Do those near the crest go first, while the others follow or is it the ones closest to the ground, or is it completely haphazard, without rhyme or reason?

Notice, unless there’s absolutely no breeze leaves just don’t fall straight down.  They glide, twist and turn, flutter, travel, often a good distance from their point of origin.  Some resist a downward path, instead catching an upward draft,  gracefully ascend for a time before submitting to the inevitable pull of gravity.

What about those leaves that never fall off, but remain attached to the tree throughout the fall and winter.  Is jt their function to remind us that others will return in the Spring.  Do they regret having been unable to join the others?  I think not because those strewn on the ground will soon crumble, pile up or be ground up, cast away and treated with indifference for the most part – as are most things, once they’ve served their purpose.

They just might be the saddest, most disturbing words in the English language – “I have nothing to look forward to.”  That’s probably because all of us find pleasure in our lives when  there are “good” times ahead.  Looking back, which we all do, presents a mixed picture, wonderful memories, but also disappointments and “might have beens.”  Looking forward, on the other hand, is typically upbeat, filled with anticipatory delights coming your way.

Looking forward encompasses a time frame that ranges from several hours to weeks and months and well beyond.  Daily we’re likely to look forward to our lunch break, end of the work day, rejoining our family and getting into bed to watch favorite television programs.  TGIF tells us that the end of the work week is a time eagerly anticipated as is the weekend when we’re able to relax, take in a movie, head off to a favorite restaurant, enjoy a day trip, watch our teams in action on TV, be with friends and relatives whose company we enjoy.

Considering the longer term there are the holidays to look forward to, a major family event (anniversaries, significant birthdays, births, graduations, marriages, etc.), as well as vacations, concerts and sporting events.  Also, the purchase of a home and for some, prison release or end of a military tour of duty.  Stretching the time horizon even further, most all of us look forward to retirement, to pursuing hobbies, to lengthy vacation trips, to grandchildren, and, in the end, hopefully to our  entry into heaven.

While we live in the moment, when we look forward the future becomes very much a part of our present, has considerable bearing on the way we perceive our lives, our state of mind, how we manage when times are difficult.  Looking forward to specific events helps spark our Imaginations, allows us to relish a future happening many times over as the  day draws near (the intervening period often regarded as an unwelcome “delay”).  It’s what buoys our spirits, sustains us, helps infuse into  an often  lackluster present the delights and satisfactions the future promises to provide.

What happened?  Who could see it coming?  Remember when America was riding high, leading the world in this area or that category.  We weathered the Great Depression without major disruption to our society.  We defeated Japan and helped bring down Hitler’s Germany in World War II.  We assisted Europe in getting back on its feet and stood up to the Soviet Bloc until it disintegrated.  Our major companies went on to straddle the world and at home an expanded middle class emerged, a good portion of which moved out to suburbia and into their own homes.  Our system seemed to work well and we had much to show for it. In one important measurement after another America led the world.  We were #1 (or so we were told).

And then it changed.  Just look around, check it out.  Consider the abundant data and comparative figures ranking the nations of the world.  In most instances we’ve lost our edge, dropped out of first, often ending up in the middle of the pack – or worse.  Our infrastructure continues to deteriorate.  Our trains run too slowly along aging tracks, our airports don’t measure up to those overseas, our bridges are rusting, our electric grids overburdened.  Our educational system compares unfavorably to many overseas in important categories of performance.  Too many of our students are dropping out, not graduating, failing to acquire the education they need to succeed in the job market.  The United States, which once led the world in the percentage of college graduates, has fallen behind, and too  often those who’ve graduated are deficient, know less than they should.  Our health system is insanely costly, our health statistics generally poorer than most advanced countries.  Social mobility long the watchword and pride of America has not ended but the lead in this area has passed on to a number of European nations.  Same with entrepreneurial activity.  It’s still taking place but the pace is greater elsewhere as is small business formation.  Large corporations in the U.S. are doing well, but investment in research has slowed and instead of underwriting innovation, companies are spending huge amounts of their capital buying back their stock, which, among other consequences, enhances the wealth of corporate executives.  No surprise then that income inequality has grown in the U.S.  Not unknown in other advanced economies, the disparities are notably greater in the United States.

Our political system, at least on the national level is deadlocked, unable to respond, unwilling to address the many pressing needs of the nation.  Money is flooding into politics giving the wealthy and well connected undue influence over policies and prompting despair and disillusionment among large segments of the electorate.  Gun violence continues unabated, the number of weapons in circulation vastly great than anywhere else in the world.  Carbon continues to pour into the atmosphere while substantial portions of the population deny that this represents much of a problem.  While all this is going on at home, overseas the U.S. seems to have lost its ability to shape events, to restrain the forces of disorder that threaten to engulf extensive regions of the world.

Sure it’s complicated, but can anyone account for this substantial shift in U.S. performance, this slippage across the board?  You will hear much speculation and countless theories, but no one has managed as yet to offer a convincing comprehensive explanation.  Clearly the rest of the world, following our lead, has caught up, but that doesn’t  explain America’s  achievement gap..

Are we running out of gas?  Does it have something to do with the “inevitable” decline of once dominant nations?  Are we in a temporary downturn that will run its course?  Will the United States, ever resilient, rebound effectively?  There’s no predicting – there are no guarantees.