Fall
My favorite season debuts again.My soul begins to feel lighter,
and memories flood forward.
I remember…
walks on cool mornings,
homecoming with my sister and I
in matching orange & blue sweaters,
smiling pumpkins shining from a front tree,
evening drives with the top down and
the swirling cool air danced to the beat of
my favorite song.
Memories stir a deep desire to celebrate
with an old friend I meet every year.
I want to be with her again…
Doing cartwheels on her freshcut lawn,
giggling like a child,
running through her fall-colored woods,
picking only the most brilliant leaves
to press somewhere between the pages of
Camden and Acadia.
Looking for the one solid rock
on a path framed by lobster traps
and lit by the fading sun.
Eating homemade ice cream
given by a distant brother,
while wearing a borrowed denim shirt,
sleeping on the foldout couch
to be closer to the fire.
Unprepared for an early snow,
hiking in knee-deep powder with bare
ankles,
proof that streaks of naivete still exist
in the reasoning of a southern girl,
beginning to get a little scared
as the sun sets with miles to go,
yet the happiest pictures of me unfold…
on the top of Jasper Ridge.
The brilliance of a happy soul shines
through,
captured for eternity in an album
treasured by my lover.
Last year came and went without her.
Without me.
No time to play.
I wait.
Another year is finally here.
Another white pin?
Now choosing to miss her or miss him.
Coupled years of distance
increase my longing for her warmth.
Will she and I create memories
now only known to me?
Will they be just as cherished
as those I shared with another?
Does seeing the reflection of my joy
truly amplify it …
the single look that says I was there,
with you,
and I remember,
and it really was extraordinary.
Why do I travel a thousand miles to
witness her yearly show?
Is it a well worn prop I use,
unable to unleash the passion
that already exists inside my soul
without seeing the color of the leaves to
prompt my memory of who I was,
and who I will be again?
Can I travel a thousand thoughts,
using words not distance
to uncover the key
that unlocks my own personal light,
the one that is uniquely mine,
but conceived for me to share?
How do I find the aura created there…
two sincere souls
risking
laughing
thoughts never said before,
or again.
A simple time
with no interruptions.
Somewhere away from
overburdening deadlines
and without paper tigers to tame.
Am I really missing her
or missing the carefree version of us
found under autumn trees
planted so far from here?
Priscilla Wise
August 31, 1997| Go Higher | More Poetry
Site Map | New Age Directory of Planet Earth | Links for EnlightenmentCopyright 1997 Priscilla Wise
