Autumn’s End

∞

A stinging rain

Blew into town.

Clattering branches,

Chattering trees

Gave up their color

As last leaves let loose

And flew with the wind,

In search of their mother.

The beckoning Earth,

Her arms spread wide,

Cried, “Come! Nestle here

In your place of beginning.”

And warmly

She welcomed them home.

∞

The sky opened wide

And her tears of grief

Pelted my heart

As she wailed her

Farewell to Autumn.

Splashing and flashing

In streams, red and orange,

Crashing on rocks

As it rushed down the river

Of salty tears, swelling

And lifting its beauty

For one last review

As it vanished from sight,

And returned, once again, to the sea.

∞

Its work now complete,

The storm subsides.

Skeletal trees

Stand exposed and reveal

The first, still beginnings

Of winter’s hand,

Painting his landscapes

In black and white.

Naked reality.

Endings.

Take out the small seed

From your pocket.

Plant it today,

While the Earth is unfrozen.

∞

Tell it the stories

Of springtime to come.

Honor its holiness,

Sing it a lullaby

Tuck it in well

As the Earth mother sleeps.

Trust in the circles

And cycles

Of life.

Sleep.

∞

©Pamela Stead Jones 2010