The child is growing old. Another leaf has fallen from the sapling trees. The crunch of leaves penetrates the fog with each step the boy takes. It is nothing less than a well heard rite of passage. The wire on the fence is worn and loose. The safety gate of childhood is gone and the wide open meadow awaits. Just for a moment it is quiet as the boy’s shoes momentarily hide in the remnants of yesterday’s nest. With one last look back of uncertainty, he is called to that sun just rising on the horizon. The mist is lifting on a hopeful blue sky and the promise of new life echoes in his old soul in this “advent of adolescence.”