leaves – Words and Feathers

old growth (20161101)

i am an old growth forest
with leaves red as blood
undersides caked with black mold

the loamy earth
cannot contain my writhing roots
now exposed to shadows and gnawing

field mice–
–here in the shadows
you cannot see the sun

that crowns my head

trees shaken by breezes
in summer when shadows
are crisp
in fall
when clouds hide
our other selves

books opened
favored passages
corners dog-eared

your love
in spring when belief
is easy
in winter when the leaves
are moldy memories stuck
to shoes

——

the light is gone, replaced by gloom
cold water laps my feet unseen
by all but keenest twilight eyes

i linger long before your tomb
antique lions patinaed green
my sole companions of great size

i wait here with them for my doom
above the darkness grows between
the stars wink out so many lies

you said you’d wait while pale you grew
i’ve killed this world to join with you

——

Friday Haiku, in honor of summer winding down
—

the summer sky blue
wind waving dappled green leaves
and my pounding heart

falling

a leaf does it
though i almost
never see the action
just the evidence
brown and split on the ground

tracked in wet and flat
on the bottom of my shoe
and always always near
the entryway
just in time for the cat to spot it

and in this drought
i try to feel guilty
for watering my trees
but i can’t work it up
because these are my trees
and their leaves

are