My words have become leaves

Tossed in the bitter wind

The wind a foretaste of winter

And the days darken more quickly

I dreamed with the trees

Our lavish gloried visions

Made into detritus by inexorable passage

Become dry drabs trodden unnoticed

Yet these desiccated remnants remember

Remember with such fealty to beauty

That they sway time’s unbending resolve

The months bring bleak skies and cold rain

Cover yourself against the chill

Feeding the yellowed pages with faded ink into the fire

To warm you through the lengthy march

Eventually in the lightening morn

You’ll gather your courage, peer into the new sun, and know

The pledge I made

The pledge of the trees

We vowed true

The house ruined by fire,

Flames so hot that the brick walls collapsed.

The surrounding countryside invaded by strangers,

Pathways paved to build busy streets.

The bridge destroyed in a hurricane,

Massive supports twisted by wind and waves.

My ancestors were wanderers, and I will never call anywhere home

Knowing shelter ephemeral and beauty brief.

I still recall the taste of fresh figs in the summer

Warm from the hot sun and sweet.