Keep

Maple leaves charm forest floor.
Imagine there’s an open door
That keeps one satisfied - no more.
Walk along the way.

Simplicity, that raging fire,
Lets dreams go deep to then rise higher.
With worries done all doubts retire
To reach the end of day.

Linked to dVerse Quadrille. Kim from Writing in North Norfolk hosts with the theme word “keep”.

Maple Leaves on Forest Floor

Autumn Leaves / Autumn Light

Linked to K’lee and Dale’s Cosmic Photo Challenge with the theme “Autumn Leaves / Autumn Light”.

Also linked to Trent P. McDonald’s The Weekly Smile. Last weekend the maple leaves were brilliant. Although most of those leaves fell, as I expected they would after the brief snowstorm, some remained on this cloudy, cold Saturday which was warm enough to melt the snow. That made me smile.

Autumn Garden
Trent P. McDonald’s The Weekly Smile

From Night to Day

As Philip watched the evening shine
With tiny stars to pierce the dark,
He felt a cooling calm and peace
Then dread turned on his mind to mark
With fear that all about his head
Were coffin lids to seal the dead.

Then Philip saw how dawn was cast,
How darkness bowed and night flew past.

Linked to dVerse Poetics. Sarah is hosting with the theme of presenting a story through the experiences of a character.

Northbrook Village Green

Quiver

I’d quiver uselessly with fear
But autumn weather’s very nice.
Let this fall come settle here.
I’ll hold off worrying of ice.

White stuff that the winter brings
May bury me in frigid snows,
But not today. Autumn sings
Final songs before it goes.

Linked to dVerse Quadrille. De Jackson is hosting with the word “quiver”.

Lagoon Screened by Tall Plants

Indigenous Behavior

The 40 degree weather didn’t stop locals and non-locals, all of us indigenous to this planet, from running, or cheering on the runners, in the Chicago Marathon. 

Admittedly there is something odd about 45 thousand members of an indigenous species voluntarily running 26.2 miles and even keeping track – to the second – of records such as the 2:14.04 top time set by Kenyan’s Brigid Kosgei for women runners.  I can imagine aliens from another planet, ready to invade, having second thoughts because of that, but if these marathons help keep out those non-indigenous species I’m all in favor of them.

The photo I took was from the very last mile at the very end of the race going up Michigan Avenue. The top winners had finished hours ago. If I were a runner and I got that far, which is questionable, that’s where I’d be. About midway under the Chinatown arch what made me smile was a sign that read, “Hurry up and finish, your mom’s freezing out here”.

Run past Chinatown
in windy Chicago weather
back home to Grant Park

Linked to Trent P. McDonald’s The Weekly Smile. Also linked to dVerse Haibun Monday where Frank J. Tassone hosts with the theme to “celebrate all things indigenous”.

Trent P. McDonald’s The Weekly Smile

Inside Out

Inside the oak it’s rich with rings,
Ringing without sound.
Richly rests this oak that clings
Still soundlessly on ground.

Linked to K’lee and Dale’s Cosmic Photo Prompt with the theme to pick one or more of inside out, outside in or upside down.

The poem illustrates the figure of speech known as a polyptoton where a root word is repeated but not exactly such as “rings” and “ringing” or “rich” and “richly” or “sound” and “soundlessly”. I will be featuring polyptoton on dVerse on October 24th.

Inside Out