Monthly Archives: October 2016

In An Oven-y October: What The Water Says

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In an oven-y October,
Tolkien’s waning of the year,
Hush and hush and listen closer;
Hear the water through the sere:

“It’s all
Clear
All of it
Especially the
Frosted-glass, distorted
Mystery.

It’s all
Manageable
All of it
Especially the burden
Pressing hard on the bruise.

It’s all
Walkable
All of it
Especially the scouring road,
The abrasion, the raw hide.

It’s all
Art
All of it
Especially the colors of the trees and of
The days you drive away.

It’s all
Beautiful
All of it
Especially the singing at
Her funeral.

It’s all
Irreplaceable
All of it
Especially when we arrive
Empty-handed, not even a succulent
For the kitchen window.

It’s all
Temporary
All of it
Especially the night time,
Because the sun does what
The sun does.

It’s all
Worth it
All of it
Especially the exchange which only
Begins with a giving up.

It’s all
True
All of it
Especially the part you repeat to
Yourself with a tremor and a gulp.

It’s all
Breathed
All of it
By the Trust Worthy”

Sings the water.

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Ode To October – Maple Missy

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One leaf asked another
To the Leaf Dance today.
He was a crispy Oak dandy,
And she a red Maple babe.

They tossed and they tumbled
Down the asphalt street,
All tips and toes and points
And light on their feet.

Maple Missy rocks low
In a green cradle new;
Granny whispers Baby, Baby,
Follow steady, follow true.

So smooth, he dipped her low
At the red stop sign,
Where they joined all their friends
In the wind dance line.

The length of Woodland Street
Was their ballroom floor;
But it was fall and it was dry;
He was less, she wanted more.

Maple Missy rocks low
In a green cradle new;
Granny whispers Baby, Baby,
Follow steady, follow true.

Came the one doomed waltz
Past Ginkgo Gold,
And Miss Maple turned aside;
Crispy Dandy – he was old.

Ginkgo smoked and he leaned,
Didn’t join the fandango.
His goldness was enough,
He himself was the tango.

Maple Missy rocks low
In a green cradle new;
Granny whispers Baby, Baby,
Follow steady, follow true.

She only saw what wasn’t there,
Didn’t see the coming cold,
Forsook her gentle man,
Linked her arms with Ginkgo Gold.

Together they were ravishing,
Like two peaches paired.
All youth and sap and flashpoint,
They were now and neither cared.

Of course that tango ended –
Ginkgo Gold flamed up and gone.
And Maple, she is crispy,
But she’s red, and she is strong.

Maple Missy rocks low
In a green cradle new;
Granny whispers Baby, Baby,
Follow steady, follow true.

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