November Surprise
Posted by admin on September 21st, 2009
Walking in November’s early dusk
I spot a wispy birch with only a few discolored leaves
clinging to its branches, the same tree that several weeks ago
wore the most vibrant orange and
prompted me to think:
Summer goes by faster every year.
Looking at it now
I wonder why this seems true, for
the passage of time does not hasten or lag but
is a ceaseless, steady march.
As a strong breeze grabs hold of the last brittle holdouts
of the birch
sends them swirling
to settle on the ground
I realize that,
tumbling into the unknown expanse of the future
a man always feels as though he’s falling
Down
into the abyss of time.
In his vertigo,
not even the steady passage of seasons
is fully comprehensible.
It’s why I look at the same tree,
naked and vulnerable,
and think:
Fall goes by faster every year.