As the Leaves Change...

As the leaves change,
So do I.
They slowly shed
Their shimmering summer skin,
All waxy and green,
And trade it for
Brightly colored fall coats,
Which last only a moment
Before they fall away...

Their fall coats,
In all their brilliance,
Do not last,
They cannot last....
It is a sign they are done...
They are dying.

As the leaves change,
So do I.
As each evening
The sun sets sooner,
The darkness grow darker,
The days and nights
Grow colder...
I shed my own summer skin,
Wishing I could instead
Keep it on forever...
Never having to don
My fall coats...
And my winter coats...

As the leaves change,
So do I...
But not so brightly,
Not so gracefully.
I change with the winds
Blowing in cold snows...
And as my body shivers
And shakes with the cold,
My heart grows cold
And empty,
Longing...
For the long summer days,
The blistering heat of day,
The radiating warmth in the night...

As the leaves change,
So do I.
My mind grows cloudy,
Like the days.
Days and days
And days and days
Without sunshine...
My soul feels brittle,
Almost broken underfoot,
Crushed,
Like the autumn leaves--
Once so bright and festive.
My soul feels bare,
Like the limbs of the trees
Once brightly adorned
With shimmering green leaves...

As the leaves change,
So do I.
I will wait...
I will watch...
For the tiny buds of spring
To fight their way through the cold
Through the winter...
Until they blossom,
Into beautiful
Glistening green leaves
Rustling in the summer breeze.

As the leaves change,
So do I....