In Fall

Math's gone mad. The countless leaves zigzag
settling like gloves in a lost and found.
Quite a high price tag
for a hand-me-down.

The applause before their prodigal descent
is like all human effort—dear
love spent on one tint,
a pure Vermeer

yellow, which though excessive, isn't false.
The colors are sad, a late encounter
with hope. We watch them fill fall's
bargain counter.

Copyright © 2005 Doretta Wildes All rights reserved
from Cimarron Review
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission