Walking a creek valley bounded by two mountain walls on a sunny day can be frustrating. Aki and I are in shadow, sliding along an informal trail. We cross a leafy bench big enough to accommodate one troll family or a village of hobbits. The little dog seems to be searching for evidence of both. Sunlight is doing some special things to Mount Juneau on our left, intensifying the red and yellow of dog wood leaves and spotlighting bare cottonwoods. Low angled light underlines their longest limbs in shadow as they reach to the south. I start singing, “They are leaning out for love and they will lean that way forever.” Aki stares as if she can see the Leonard Cohen ear worm enter my brain. I sing about Suzanne, with her tea and oranges all the way from China as we climb up the trail and into the sun.