3

Whittled

and gnawed

to the orange

flesh flame

a plump bowl

of pumpkin

submits

and succumbs

to the waning remains

of a garden patch

haunted

by squirrels

who read well

the turning of leaves

prolonging in essence

each movable feast

of transformative

autumn fire

4

Splash!

the hooded

merganser skids

and snatches its prey

from a flickering creek

that murmurs

and cackles

its course

unperturbed

On a wall

of cold stone

moldy gray

mossy green

fairy tale lichen

trumpet resilience

5

Call forth

buried whims

of a wayward heart

from the soil and spore

of decaying dreams

Stout gemstones

arouse from a mound

of dank wood chips

in constellations

of short-lived splendor

6

A swamp rose

blushed salmon

encased in first frost

The web of old labors

suspended and taut

A spider retreats

to a splintery niche

and is never betrayed

by the moment

7

Prune

the orchard

with painstaking joy

and lay no claim

on perfection

Necessity

calls upon modesty

to encourage

uncanny designs

of fruition

8

Refrain

from sheer notions

of darkness and light

on a path without nuance

through left brain

and right

The universe bows

to the language of place

and gains shape

through each child

of its making

Lloyd Vivola

December 26, 2017

In Cascadia