walking home
weather pulling her numbing, somber blinds
over the sky

small specks of color dot the collage
of ashen grays, the browns of recessing
vegetation,
and the green hazel carpet
bound by the sobering glue of reality

maple, oak, and elm leaves gilt in gold
and bronze
fiery oranges and reds
fly free of their trees in bowl-shaped swoops
slashing the frigid, livid air

the sporadic patter of
light rain breaks off
the rhythm of my feet on the concrete

a child's chalk siren soaked with the
afternoon showers
sundry colors drowned in leaf-shaped
puddles
pinks, yellows, and reds frame maple leaves of
the nearby tree protruding stone slabs

my lack of sleep leaves my head in a rainy autumn day
a drab canvas Jackson-Pollocked with the leaves