Pause for poetry:
Michael Hawkes /11
Autumn
A poem by Michael Hawkes
Who can deny
That trees are sad
When losing leaves
To Autumn winds;
When sap runs dry
And limbs are tired
Of straining to
The cold winds’ whims;
When heart wood rots
To dust within,
When siblings have to
Prop them up,
When bark peels off
In sheets then drops?
Who can tell
Of trees’ despair
Enduring Winter’s ogling stare,
Unsheltered, naked, standing there
On carpets of their foliage?
Who can tell
If trees know time;
That Fall is but a solemn stage,
That Spring may well reverse decline?
Or do they suffer with mankind
And share an arboreal rage?
28/09/20 Hawkes
Feature image: Andrew Burlone
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Michael Hawkes was a cherished poet and contributor whose work enriched the pages of WestmountMag.ca with its sensitivity and depth. Over the years, he entrusted us with a rich body of poems, of which only a portion has yet been published. His passing leaves a profound void, but the poems still to come will continue inspire all who were moved by his voice.
I love this man’s poems. Wordsworth himself would have appreciated their
lovely lyrical tribute to Nature! Can’t wait for more.