COLORFUL LADY

Autumn has come courting, leaving her old summer flame behind

I see her but once a year, yet my heart yearns for her through each season

She comes whirling in with a refreshing burst of a crisp breeze

And leaves a new and invigorating scent in the air

She carries with her a paint brush and a palette of brilliant colors

To begin a masterpiece on an inviting seasonal canvass

Soon she will dance, her calico skirt rustling in the

Colorful fancy she has created

For some, autumn means work

For children it means good times and play

It means piles of raked leaves to frolic in

A visit to the pumpkin patch to pick out one for the perfect Jack-O-Lantern

Hayrides, apple cider, candy corn, popcorn balls, bobbing for apples

For me it is a time of reflection, remembering a time long ago

We shuffled and jumped for joy in her rain of hues

We rushed inside from play with a red nose and blushed cheeks

A cup of hot chocolate warmed our hands and heart

I drank in her very essence along with the cocoa

I embraced every hour of her visits, knowing that I would soon

Wake to find that she had faded away into Old Man Winter and

I would be homesick to see her 'til she came around again
@Joanne Kennedy 2011