Autumn's Joy

An Autumn Poem:

This poem was inspired by a walk to my parents earlier this month.

Autumn returns, with rustling leaves,
birdsong drifts where summer left.
A jay glides past with nuts in its crop,
Caching food for colder weather.

Trees glisten bright from a gentle shower,
Yellowed hues— no crimson glow
False Christmas lights in early bloom,
Halloween barely left the room.

Take your decorations home please.

Berries gleam, amongst the branches
Dead nettle’s white flowers peeking.
A starling flock disturbs the mistle thrush, ‘zer’r’r’r’r’
Its feast cut short with a startled rush.

A Sparrowhawk flees the gull’s domain,
from sewage spoils it sought in vain.
Is that my mother’s voice I hear—
A crow’s call echoing Mark, Mark.

Linnets flutter to fields afar,
Skylarks rise like Vaughan Williams's star
Dutchman's breeches drift in sky's embrace
while pansies plead for a bee's brief grace.

Burdock looms, forlorn and dry,
yet clings to fawns that wander by.
A robin whispers for an oaty treat,
Soft and tender, its song discreet.

Three partridge stand, two wagtails call,
One buzzard mews above them all.
Cherry trees bare, their berries gone,
Hoverflies hum where ivy hung.

Lunuled Aphideater (Eupeodes luniger) & Common Banded (Syrphus ribesii)

Luniger and banded, they weave and dart,
escaping webs with a frantic heart.
The humble bumble, last to roam,
marks the end of autumn’s poem.

The End.