Poem: Fallen Leaf

 

Fallen Leaf

  

tiny flounder, lost from teat,

postured in mud, doormat for rain.

 

torn edges gape, or yell maybe,

at whatever accident slew the mood.

 

black ribs frolic with fungus,

the rest such a long-gone auburn,  some  ... 

daguerreotype,

gutted and splayed by a spectral cat.

all day

 

 shadows waltz to quibble

slick over the leaf's cranberry dapples,

tiny age spots which mock 

or perhaps honor, the sun.

 

probably the leaf doesn't care

about the sun or my audience,

or cranberry dapples

and the dying papyrus they distress.

 

mauled as a martyr,

no fanfare, not even a note,

the leaf dissolves on its way,

a slump-and-fade into hearty soil,

as if coming home.

=================================================

9/26 heavy mods to 'okay' poem ... heavy ... probably all bad, just playing ping pong with myself

4/27/24 

3/21 ... fixed another problem ... poem is finally 'okay'

3/19  massive changes  ... poem was awful before... might be still, can't tell ... rarely can

fixed typo ("doesn't care" replaces "does care" ...)