The Birth of Autumn

Image is my own
At the edges of this cool morning,
humming with the dying of summer,
I, long awake, attend to things
that must be done:
dogs fed; trash pulled to the curb;
a load of laundry started;
hummingbird feeders cleaned;
all ordinary, mundane things—
This chill in the air has me wish
I’d put on a jacket, yet the chill
will be gone by noon. 
And I find I smile.

For the first time,
I do not despair at the dying
of this year’s summer,
but find a joyous warmth 
in the light as this year’s autumn
is born.