an autumn letter
 
from a friend I’ve known for years–
 
blue ink, white paper

 
 

Summer morning walk—
 
to amuse himself, my friend
 
converses with crows.

 
 

Tea and sunflowers—
 
I have a friend who loves both,
 
and writes poems.

 
 

June draws to a close—
 
I think of my dog Skipper,
 
my childhood best friend.

 
 

Unexpected snow
 
crushes my friend’s daffodils—
 
why shouldn’t she weep?

 
 

On a March morning
 
my friend tells me her husband
 
has three months to live.

 
 
 

O my lifelong friend,
 
it is hard to say goodbye—
 
listen, the geese fly!

 
 
 

First autumn sorrow—
 
an email from an old friend
 
says his wife just died.

 
 
 

As July winds down,
 
the husband of a friend dies
 
unexpectedly.

 
 
 

Underneath the bills
 
I find a New Year’s greeting
 
from my childhood friend.