The leaves
seemed to wither and die
slowly this year,
as if the foliage red
sliced its veins and slowly
bled out.
Autumn glows yellow
like a book gradually develops
jaundice and eventually
collapses into dust.

The possibilities
of Summer are gone
and Winter inches her
ice-cold eyes
over the horizon,
turning her gaze inward
as the skies turn gray
and melancholy falls
like a torrent of freezing rain.

I ponder these things
while birds begin their
southern retreat
and night-time darkness
arrives swifly,
equipped with
Orion's Belt as
a holster and
the Crescent Moon as
a revolver.

My feet seem to be frozen
to dawn's frost as it
wraps it's frigid fingers
around my ankles -
shackles fitting for a
prisoner trapped in
the Season's purgatory.

The smell of autumn
Thick in the air
Colored leaves
The trees to wear
A quiet stream
Hidden and deep
A tender secret
The forest must keep
And presiding over all
The great harvest moon
Heralding winter
Coming thus soon

Autumnus
Where is the Sun,
away from the light,
of the Northern hum
Days are shorter
Here they come,
long cosy nights,
Sun retracted,
distanced, and done,
far from the
Northern Hemisphere,
Solar Sun,
cold of the Northern Pole
biting at one,
bring on cosy nights,
warm hum hum,
feel free to distance,
warm Solar Sun

© 2020  Carol Natasha Diviney

But first etymological climatological meteorological esoterica:

The word autumn (/ˈɔːtəm/) is derived from Latin autumnus, archaic auctumnus, possibly from the ancient Etruscan root autu-and has within it connotations of the passing of the year. Alternative etymologies include Proto-Indo-European *h₃ewǵ- ("cold") or *h₂sows- ("dry").

If you reside in the Eastern time zone, then fall officially begins at 8:43 a.m., local time. The start of fall will be at 7:43 a.m. in the Central time zone, 6:43 a.m. in the Mountain time zone and 5:43 a.m. in the Pacific time zone.

Despite twittering, uber
sputtering kickstarting lyft
onset of cool weather
argh, another brief daily spate
re: forecasting blistering,
nauseating, sweltering...
ninety degree plus Fahrenheit
temperature forecast
(along eastern seaboard)
courtesy mister summer,
who will overstay his welcome
hoop fully a more seasonable
cooling trend rounds out ninth month
(according to Gregorian calendar).

The above lines crafted
when poetic endeavor
herewith follows tapped out
across qwerty keyboard
when this poem initially written
at least one earth orbit ago.

I eagerly looked forward
to crisp refreshing air
much more comfortable
to weather being outdoors
within/out this sequestered enclave
postage stamp size geographical area
offers respite versus metropolitan
denser population centers,
the former disappearing open space
rather disheartening, but urbanization -

purportedly the definition of progress
finds once open farmland
more than fifty plus years back
crumbling barns now tombstones
testimony when people
farmed the land, and lived
linkedin with rhythms of nature,
which only found courtesy said vestiges
inevitably razed (similar to boyhood home

324 Level Road) finds yours truly
brooding fast paced instant
credit karma gratification
twenty first century, which
small, medium forces at large
outfox the time tested imprimatur
i.e. latent powers planet Earth
unleashes (thank you global warming)
decrees final curtain call.

**** sapiens runs rampant
wreaking havoc all points of compass
already inundated with scorching,
melting ice caps, flooding...
future generations, yet unborn
might avoid predicated on
dramatic alternatives fossil fuels
already showered Gaia
with carbon dioxide
as well other noxious poisons
though vibrant advocacy
evident among students

vocally demonstrating against
irrevocable damage, whereby environment
and countries situated
near sea level take heavy hit,
nonetheless... cautious optimism flickers
inducing mandatory one hundred eighty degree
reorientation regarding eco friendly
methodologies to lo mein, maintain,
sustain... technological civilization,
else quaint existence of thee
will be read about
in digitized history books.

The track was hot with autumnus heat
While the bleachers reflected an open sunshine
I felt the rooted feeling of avoidance
The weighted awareness of my longing for release
Had convinced me to flee
For a brief moment
The unsettling rattle of companionship
Close by, but unseen
Stirred me with scent and sound
I sat in my relief trying to feel the rush of my
Fleeting toxins
Fleeing me

I reached out for something tangible
I could feel what was always familiar

I couldn't identify the vicious concerns
Wrapped so delicately in my routine
A dagger clutched me
Alike,  i’d clutched it
This pain dawns like a masquerade
With cheap, unforgiving cloth
The palette of my skin became malbec on a white dress tent
Enveloping the practice
Of being numb

Companionship became confusion
While the screams became louder
in the depths of screeching,
I could evacuate my despair
Though not without my tragedy
Leaving an echoing hum behind me
Forming dichotomy as if my pain
Was trying to escape me

Companionship became witness
A rambling explanation of a situation
Melted into self interrogation


Two contradicting ends of one spectrum
Colliding in unfavorable manors
Depleting nature of its pollination
Creates a channel of confessions

The hole was empty
the swelling left alpine bruises
Delicately observed

The dagger was gone
The evidence was towering and
The drive home was like floating
bare on an ice cap miles from
the nearest track.