Thoughts on Autumn
by Ondine Farlam
Amethyst
Leaves turn from green to gold
In the gentle, damp sweet air.
Pale yellow and copper,
The sun's rays stream through leaves
Transformed now to hanging jewels.
The leaves loosen and drop
Twirling like a falling feather.
Resting on the earth,
A thick carpet of gold and scarlet
For us to dance among.
In the school garden
Golden-red apples, perfect pears
Hang in branches, heavy and ripe.
I reach up my hand to twist off the fruit
Dropping plump in my palm.
I wonder if the trees
Are lonely without their lovely leaves.
I hope they know their bare branches,
As they reach to the sky,
Are beautiful too.
Then there are the conkers
In hedgehog-spiky coats,
Like presents waiting to be opened.
I turn their rich brown shapes,
Smooth and calm in my fingers.
In the darkening air,
Wood smoke curls from cob oven.
We are warmed to the core.
Pizza and bread cooks.
We gather round orange light to eat.
As the nights draw in
Pumpkin lanterns light paths
Through the Halloween dark.
I think of crackling log fires I will light
As the season turns once more.