Children of Autumn (2013)

We live as the children of autumn’s first snow,
Brought forth in the warmth of the waning glow
Of summer, accustomed to bounty and wealth.
But the seasons are changing: silent, with stealth
The cold is approaching, the riches we clasp
Are rotting away in our weakening grasp.
The summer expires with a sigh and a gasp,
And the dirges of winter begin to blow.

Over the Mountains (2013)

My love has wandered far away,
Over the mountains and over the sea,
So far, so far, I cannot say
If ever he will homeward stray,
If ever he’ll return to me.

He left upon an autumn eve,
The leaves of summer falling fast
About us.  I did not believe
That he would go; I did not grieve:
I knew he would return at last.

I knew he loved me more than life,
That we were bound by destiny,
Through all the suffering and the strife,
To join ourselves as man and wife
From now until eternity.

But I did not understand how time
Can swiftly, suddenly, pass us by,
As clouds may thin from their billowy prime,
And the sun complete its downward climb,
While a person turns away her eye.

You looked at me with love and grief.
I did not understand you then;
My thoughts were filled with disbelief.
Now in my hand is a blackened leaf,
And I cannot make it green again.

I cannot make you reappear,
I cannot draw you home to me,
I cannot bring your body near,
Or send my sight across the sheer
White mountains, or the azure sea.

My love, you’ve wandered far away,
Over the mountains and over the sea;
So far, so far, but do not stay,
Come back again, I hope and pray;
Return the love that’s lost to me.