October 30, 2025

Autumnal Changes

1.
What I thought
was a dying butterfly
was a folded leaf
fallen early
in the autumnal wars.

2.
An abrupt warm-up
and three weeks 
of rain wrap a log 
like a rug --
A coral colony 
of fungi --
festive in its 
own right.

3.
Half the tree's
longitude is gone --
A worm warren of 
past lives exposed --

This is not about rings,
but generosity;
accommodation--
not accumulation.

And the loveliness
that can be wreckage--
One's full use
completely expended.

4.
This is why courage
is more important
than hope.

Hope flowers & fades
while courage
roots in bedrock.

And faith in the flower's
renewal springs
from bedrock.