Fall Weather

Light slowly seeps into awareness
As the dim outline of trees in the distance
Materialize above the silvery fog
Which hangs along the creek.

The cool dampness is a pleasant change
From the sultry heat which has hung on
Long past the peak of summer
When it is expected.

The cattle move like specters through the mist
As they harvest the wet succulence of the recent growth
From rains which seemed long delayed
As the heat of August domed the land.

A sense that Fall has arrived has finally
Leaped from the start of school and
The Friday night rituals of football and marching band
To the weather itself.

The harvest is in full swing as crops
Are brought into the storehouse against the needs
Of the looming months of cold
And rest for the land

As it hibernates until the time when earthly tilt
Brings longer days again which are
Warmed by the nearer sun which releases
Dormant seeds to spring anew.