a devastatingly beautiful nostalgia
washes over my mind
like the tide.
beige and blue
and my mom's eyes
somehow the shadows of leaves
dancing on the wall
makes me think of the 22 autumns
I've lived before this
a breeze of loneliness and of love,
innocence and the excitement of starting school
summer ended with its blazing heat.
the dew settles.
the puppy at our feet
looks like a miniature version
of the dog I grew up loving.
my senses are soaked.
I hear my sister laugh.
I know I've been here before.
the wind chime
that used to dangle from the chicken coop
when I was nine
now hangs in a pear tree.
her song kept grandma Sonny company on hard days,
and now the wind sends her whirling for me, too.
that fall breeze that sent my little-girl tresses spinning
calls me by name.
an old friend
who is back to check in.
The shadows of the leaves on the wall -
they're gone now.
the sun tucks in with more of a hurry,
but we are starting to slow down;
syrupy sweet moments inside
with steaming soups that fog window panes
and board games that last all night.
I send up a prayer
because this fall is unlike any other.
Hell is outside the window
with thirsty fires, political strife, and a toxic virus.
inside, we are safe in each other's arms.
Though the autumn leaves may burn before they fall
we will hold these walls up
as tall as they will stand.
The dew is settled, as is the nostalgia
and we light a morning candle.
The fresh breath of the earth feels like a good place to start
in trying to sort out whats real
and what's not.
Happy Autumn, all.
