As leaves brighten against azure skies

October air cools crisp.

Gone are sweet summer zephyrs

To strengthening winds a blow,

And one by one dance recital performers

Sweetly break the tenuous bond

Of highest tree limb branches

And drift ever so daintily

Twirling skirts of orangey red or yellow,

As if in dreams so pleasant,

No hurry to execute decent

To grassy ochre yard below.

Few birds are left to serenade,

To appreciate such grace.

Their concert venue’s emptying,

Soon hiding places bare.

Hurried dashing squirrels

With mouths full of bounty,

Do not stop for the show.

Planting nuts for winter’s store

Dictates their scurry.

A luminous colored glow

Peeks between evergreen boughs

As sun highlights every wood

‘Til all leaves pile on the ground.

Children rustle through mounds and mounds

Giggling in delight.

Rakes comb quilt-covered grass

And the hauling away begins.

A process and a comfort,

A yearly rendezvous.

Such flurries of activity

Each season dictates.

Quickly savor each detail.

Observe. Listen. Smell.

The nuances of change

Propel the seasons forward.

Absorb Nature’s energy

Hold the memories firm.

(Recall those captured pictures

During white-out snow fall

Or blazing summer heat).

The seasons pass in order,

Year after year,

One end is but a beginning-

A framework for constancy

To make a world of sense.

Yet sameness is uniqueness

In Nature’s artistry.

No matter where in time

The cycle repeats

Mother Nature’s brush creates

Singularity.

Monica Haan grew up in Niantic and recently moved back to East Lyme, where she feels “at home.” She is a retired English teacher of 36 years and enjoys writing, painting watercolors, reading, making cards and gardening. “I have been writing a lot of poetry during the pandemic,” she wrote. “It helps to make sense of the world!”

The Times is offering local readers a chance to share their poetry amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. To contribute, email times@theday.com.