Chasing Autumn

snowbirds go south seeking summer
(timing is everything)

first mention of snow
when windchill dethrones dew point,

they are out of here
seeking heat like missiles

they target warm states,
islands floating near the equator

pools, beaches, magnolias
eternal green lawns, palm trees, hibiscus

while tempting, no doubt,
I will chase autumn

when the last red maple leaf falls in the north
I will drive south

tracking peak color maps
slanted rays of light

hesitant dawns, melancholy dusks
magic tricks of fall

as green turns to orange
and tomatoes surrender

when leaves fall to their death
in crisp, crunchy heaps

and the smell of earth and decay
fills chilly night air

after summer gives up
her humid headlock, I will begin

chasing the liminal,
the season of radiant longing