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
Butterfly Mind 