Rogue-Umpqua Scenic Byway
The Road Through Paradise

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Autumn Reflections on the North Umpqua River (OR) [1]

My days start before the rising sun.
Appointments to be made and bills must be paid-
A million projects screaming to get done.
It's life where time is always in demand,
Where non-stop is the pace, count the deadlines that I face-
With every minute occupied and planned.

But the sun is rising on a hillside
Where a rolling stream's the only sound that's heard-
Where a day is measured only by the nightfall
Or the turning autumn leaves
And the whistling reprise
of a spring time bird.

The road through paradise
Isn't always a straight line.
There is beauty in every curve and swail.
To find yourself,
You need to find the time
To see nature in detail.
It's a joy that lasts when you're off the beaten path.

Now the same sun sets on the west horizon
With its color reflected on the pines
As the evening descends upon the byway,
There's a whisper on the lake
From a gentle breeze that shakes
the branches stretched through the vines.

The road through paradise
Isn't always a straight line
There is beauty in every curve and swail.
To find yourself
You have to find the time
To see nature in detail
Find joy that lasts
When you're off the beaten path.

To find yourself,
You have to find the time
To see nature in detail
Find joy that lasts
When you're off the beaten path.