CLEVELAND – In October, the state of Ohio explodes in scarlet, gold, hot pink, ochre and apricot hues, miles of trees that shimmer in the sunshine. I grew up pressing oak and maple leaves into books every fall, and jumping into massive piles of leaves.
This year the colors were particularly spectacular as I drove through the Chagrin Valley with my older brother near the home where we grew up, after visiting my father in the hospital. It was a moment of beauty and nostalgia as we prepared for what turned out to be the end.
My father, 90, was a businessman and a lifelong Republican in a state that has been solidly Republican for the last two presidential election cycles.