hazel eyes
like oak leaves and acorns:
our daughter

crisp breath
and crunching,
I rake piles

prongs scrape,
scour,
scratch the earth’s back

in October,
birch leaves flutter –
gold coins from the sky

maples sway,
dangling rubies
in the sun

with pink cheeks,
a red nose,
I comb earth’s grassy mane

an oak leaf
twirls through
sapphire sky

late afternoon –
cool wine, a
strong slant of light

a rush,
and then,
a rain of dry leaves

end over end,
an oak leaf
tumbles