The Sigh of Autumn

by Patrick Kruse

Autumn is like a sigh
After deep breaths of summer joys.
Bright mornings filled with birds singing,
Warm afternoons with the sun shining
On green trees that sway in the wind,
Swaying still in the cool evenings
As their shadows move against the sky.
These are all joys that linger with sweetness
As the cool autumn days descend.

Autumn is like a sigh
As the wind loosens the colored leaves
And creeps through your sweater,
Making you shiver;
As your bicycle rolls past smoking chimneys
And leaves crunch softly in your path;
As you finally sink into your cushioned seat
And scents of stew and spice
Settle in your nose.

Autumn is like sigh
As both sweet and painful memories
Become stars in the winter sky;
As the cold wind makes ripples on the water
And you slip silently downstream;
And nature uses its last, measured breaths
To sing a sweet song
Before it closes its eyes in death.