Thursday, September 24, 2009
Autumn Aspen
Autumn Aspen
Autumn is not like other seasons.
In summer,
you knew where you stood.
Hot days,
a blazing sun,
lazy clouds drifting
over the distant peaks.
Spring had its own
rewards,
whole hillsides in bloom
singing gloria,
streams running free,
whispering promises
you knew would
never be kept.
But fall is different,
more fickle.
Some days sleek with
warmth,
others already becoming
blustery,
hints of snow
on the ridges.
Soon it will be time
to buckle our spirits,
build a fire,
sit around with
hot cider in our hands
(at least, according
to the story tales.)
Inside,
there is work to be done.
Boxes to unpack,
clothing to sort
and send,
decide which books
we can part with at last,
now that the shelves
are so crowded.
And try to remember
which poem it was
that struck us
at so deep a level
last spring.
This year,
sudden wind and rain
took down the aspen leaves
even before
you got
to see them.
Dorothy Walters
September 23, 2009
