Fall Comes But Once a Year
By Darlene Sprague

The wild asters have bloomed among the golden rods
The milkweed hid its silk, in its puffy pods
The sumac’s red spikes stood out proud and tall
Autumn comes with cockleburs in a time called fall

Morning meadows glisten with heavy frost and dew
Wild grapes have ripened, a very blackish blue

September days move on, but no one complains
Until the weather turns colder and then it starts to rain

October brings more color
As leaves come fluttering down
They smell fresh and earthy
As they drift and hit the ground

It’s fun to walk the logging roads
When the tree branches become bare
The fallen leaves are thick and crunchy
One can kick them high into the air

Wild turkeys flock together
With this year’s crop of young
Canada geese start flying south
Their migrations have begun

Squirrels race up and down
Gathering acorns from tall oak trees
Then there are the butternuts
They really go crazy over these

November sends a message and the tamaracks change colors too
Their needles on their branches change to rich golden hues

The hay is in the barn, the fields look groomed with care
Folks have long returned from the favorite county fair

The woodpile grows higher
And has all been cut and split
To take the chill off the house
A fire in the woodstove has been lit

The vegetables are all canned and some are frozen too
Folks now have a yearning for some of Mom’s homemade stew
Garden beds are cleaned and ready for planting next year
Fall has slowly passed away with good reason
Then winter will appear and we begin a new season

•If you would like to be part of Poetry Corner in The WORLD, please submit your original work to editor@vt-world.com or mail it to The World, 403 US Rte 302-Berlin, Barre, VT 05641