Autumn Lament
September’s sun has come and gone
And now the fall is here.
October’s blaze adorns the lawn,
The swan song of the year.
The bonfires of my autumns past
Burn cool as I recall
The hayride loves that failed to last
Beyond the end of fall.
Out on the gridiron battlefield,
Where so much toil was paid,
Where cheers and chants once loudly pealed,
Now flags and glory fade.
Our friends and kinsmen now are few.
Our lovers are all gone.
All those we thought would see us through
Cannot be counted on.
When we were young we loved the fall.
We loved the leaves aglow.
Knew always we’d have one more fall.
Those days, what did we know?
(2018)
When I wrote this one last year, I had no idea how prophetic it would be. In the past 12 months, I’ve learned of the deaths of my sister-in-law, and a college dormmate. And just recently, I discovered that the high school buddy I shared more experiences with than any other has entered an Alzheimer’s nursing home.
I used to love the fall.
Poetic Champions 