Autumn Rhapsody - b. armstrong

[Larry Robinson]

Autumn Rhapsody

A darkening sky
a storm upwelling
I climb the ladder to the roof again
to clear the gutters of their burden

With every rung my mind runs back
to vintage sweethearts, Ruth and Jim,
who used to steal away this time of year
to cruise the backroads in their darned old Dodge

Picture a trailhead, them padding along,
her frail hand steadied at his elbow bend
The path beneath their walking shoes is paved with
tulip poplar leaves as bright as slickers

Scraps of maple spiral down, claret into scarlet
charged with the restless light of afternoon
cottonwoods take them by surprise
surrendering a flush of goldfinch yellow

On a dedicated bench above their town
they stop to catch their breath
       my mother, my father
as gypsy colors cool to gray
he wraps his arms like a coat around her
They turn as one and head for home

Was it the flurry of colors 
or the letting go they loved
the freeing up of beautiful spent things 
or the stunning starkness of limbs laid bare

Did they lament the utter loneness of the last leaf
or predict an early winter setting in, 
or did they come to speculate that every
leaf scar holds in its embrace
a bundled bud destined for a fresh beginning 
in some distant Spring          
                                                            
	- b. armstrong