Fall

Hiking at lunch on a work day, On an overgrown access road, The grass is shin deep, And spiders have woven so many trip lines, That I’m sure no one has been here in months. Somewhere in the central Pennsylvanian Appalachians, I wonder. Father, can you show me The wisdom Of a thousand suns Before yours sets? Climbing slowly, my heart aches. Solitude swiftly unleashing emotions Like mountain streams, cutting deep. But now I am away Over the horizon Enjoying a bittersweet mix. A guilty pleasure. Am I repeating the same mistakes? Shadow instead of form, A whisper of presence, Treading the same trails, Yet desiring so much more. Always tomorrow There will be time To leave ourselves - in them. And with them. A convenient lie, isn’t it? “Stay with me” I think As both of us, sequestered, Working, but not really, Have left us, have left me alone. “I’ll do better tomorrow,” I think And follow the blazes back home.