Of the Fallen Leaves- Katie Labelle (’19)

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The crisp fall breeze nips at my skin

Crunch

The leaves snap under a small shoe

running, erratic and uneven, the motions of a child

Fingers, grasping

I throw a handful of leaves into the air

They float downwards,

Spinning

And spinning

Until they reach the ground again

Eventually

They will be trapped under feet of snow

Until spring when they will turn to nothingness

But now they are magic

And you can almost pretend

As they are falling

That they have never fallen before

 

My mother calls out be careful

Us children run around

So consumed with our own happiness

We forget about others

Crunch

Goes my nose

I collide with an elbow

The taste of metal invades my senses

As blood drips onto the beautiful orange leaves

Staining them an ugly brown