Last days of autumn—
some leaves cling to their greenness,
despite the hard frosts.
Last days of autumn—
the fence around my garden
keeps shedding its paint.
Last days of winter—
fog blanketing the backyard
hides my leafless plum.
On the evening news
reports of robins appear—
eighteen days till spring.
Shutdown
Last days of the year—
despite Washington’s shutdown,
the sun keeps shining.
Leaves
Early December—
leaves still cling to my plum tree,
despite days of rain.
Waiting
summer’s waning days—
still waiting for a rainstorm
to un-parch the earth