Too Long, Summer ... Too Long

I was wishing for October today:

Summer heat in the crooks of my arms;

On my cheeks and my neck,

And the weight of long evenings heavy

In my hammering head.

I longed for the cool of the Autumn time,

For the turning leaves and their crispness

Beneath my booted feet;

For the smell of raging bonfires, strong

In the frigid Fall air.

I was wishing for an old October:

One with burned black bricks and worn slabs

Under my naked knees.

One with virgin candles; white and bright

In those dark, dying nights.

I prayed for the peace of the waning year,

For the harvest and the haziness,

(Caught in my crooked teeth);

For the peace of a dying world, calm

In this time of troubles.