Wind in the Pines

The wind in the pines makes a haunting sound. It seems to whisper through the tops of the tall trees, just brushing the tips of the branches. It sings gently through the needles, like a musician blowing on an instrument’s reed. The sound is hardly noticeable, when the breeze is light; but when the velocity increases, the whoosh sound of the limbs brushing against each other is like a straw broom whisking across a rough stone floor. The noise of the higher winds conjures images of ghosts, the unknown, and danger, but the soothing sound of the light breezes can lull me to sleep. I cannot imagine a sound more relaxing than that of a gentle breath of wind in the tops of the pines.

Gerald McDaniel, October 2003