you put on a show-
your dancing leaves turn from green to gold -
magic!
shimmer in the breeze,
then fall -
silent
slow
to the waiting earth - participant in the silent drama.
you put on a show.
you wait
as the autumn wind removes your yellow dress
and your branches lift themselves - light -
into the air.
-Mary Elyn Bahlert, 10/2022
Birch Companion: photo by Mary Elyn Bahlert, 2020
