‘Magic!’

Photo by Sue Shaw.

By Sue Shaw

They say the lack of chlorophyll

Makes leaves turn butter gold.

And that an inner chemistry

Tells leaves when they are old.

It tells them when the time has come

To skip off in a breeze—

That science is the answer

For what happens to the trees!

They say that excess sugar

From warm days and crisp, cold nights

Make the scarlet and the crimson—

All the reds—those bright delights!

Yes, scientific explanation 

May exist for autumn days,

From the brilliance of the colors

To the misty morning haze…

And it tells my mind the reasons

That the leaves let go and dance

But every year when autumn comes

I still feel there’s a chance…

A strong, strong possibility

That grows around my heart…

Says when it comes to autumn,

MAGIC plays a real big part!

—Shaw lives in Penobscot.

 The Rising Tide celebrates the enormous creativity of our area. If you have a poem, painting, sculpture or photograph you’d like to share with a wider audience, send it to us at info@risingtide.media. We’d love to showcase your talents.