Alaskan Autumn
The hoses are drained and coiled away
Deck chairs stored, the red one faded to pink
Window screens off but the one I forgot
Garden tools washed and oiled in the sink
This year’s catch steaked, filleted and vacuum packed
Last year’s salmon in brine for pickling
Rhubarb, strawberries in the freezer stacked
Grandma’s framboise in bottles mellowing
Of all the year I love fall the best, though
January is my favorite month
Gaining daylight until by solstice night
Eighteen, almost nineteen hours of light
But for now, the slow march into the dark
Book in my lap, a fire throwing sparks.
–Dana Stabenow, September 2019
(with apologies to every real poet I know)
