The First Autumn Leaf

Autumn came early
In late September
While a storm
Brought the rain
Across my face
It trickled down
And I felt
A maple leaf
Hit the ground.

It was the first
Autumn leaf to fall
Withering in the cold
But it was special
Marking the end
And the beginning somehow
Of a lasting friendship
I long for now.

We came together
It was July
Blue and Gold
Around a table
Each an individual
Stranger to another
But soon united
I could tell.

The days passed quietly
And more leaves fell
Like the first one there
No longer so special
Covered by the others
Lost in the shuffle
Fading into fertile soil
Nature retelling her tale.

In one autumn leaf
Friends of a feather
Leaves to a tree
Gather as a whole
Clinging to hold on
Each day upon another
In separate ways gone
But strangers again, never.