She stole into the valley from the north
with snowflakes flying from her silken hair,
and where she stepped a tender flower died,
the browned and yellowed trees she rendered bare.
Her passage put the raucous flocks to flight,
and warned the men to bank their fires with care.
She comes again as every other year,
in garb of gray and brown, the autumn blight,
to wash the lively green from farmer's fields
in "cold declensions of October night",
and freeze the under-growth to ferns of frost;
the sun no more is warm, however bright.
Does beauty hide in withered petals, still?
The harbinger of winter paints in drear,
the colder winds bring clouds and dismal rain,
and lowered skies forget that they were clear.
The asters may recall a thought of blue,
foretelling bluebells for the coming year.
In a list
A contest entry
- OCTOBER by Lyndon.
850 points, ended November 11, 2007, 10 entries
Silver trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Thanks for reading!
Comments
1 - 20 of 20
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Congratulations
So very very pleased to see a shiny trophy on this wonderful ode. So very very well done. A pleasure to read and enjoy.
~Pamela 
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Thank you for your kind appreciation, Pamela.
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Congratulations ...
on a worthy trophy, Margaret. Simply divine.
Love, Myra
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Thank you Myra. 
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This is a well-knit poem
for an ode in three stanzas. Basically, the iambic pentameters [six per stanza] end-rhyme on their even lines. abcbdb. There is a more subtle link in that the end-rhyme (No.5) becomes rhymed 2, 4 & 6 for stanza two and end-rhyme (No. 7) becomes 2, 4 & 6 for the last stanza. I suppose that I could ask what men? " the men to bank their fires " but most readers would take that as the men who work in the open sub-tundra regions, I expect.
Generally, a likeable poem. A poem that is well-crafted and speaks of the coming of Autumn in a cold land, relatively speaking.
Lyndon.
Good fortune.
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Thank you Ron, that is an interesting analysis of the rhyme. I have long admired the interweaving of Spenser's sonnet form, I feel that it binds the poem together. This usage was almost unconscious.
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What beautiful imagery contained within this piece. Your meter and rhyme are simply flawless
Ruth
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Thank you Ruth, for your applause and kind comment.
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my daughter has a phrase i love O.M.G !! and it fits here so very well. The gentle image of this time of year so wonderfully expressed is a delight to see, to read, to reflect upon. Your rhyme is perfect, unforced and carries your poem so very well. Best of luck in the contest. blessings and best wishes, ~r.
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Thank you Richard.
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Captivating, inspiring!!
The pace here is captivating and continues throughout the beautifully crafted write... like a good book you don't want to put down Well done poet!!
Wishing you much success in all of your endeavors
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really pretty and gives a sense of a sweeping saga - especially like the final couplet. Well done and best of luck in the contest!
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SPECTACULAR!!!
Margaret, I think this is one of your best writes. Vivid imagery and powerful metaphor that brings to life the seasonal changes. Yet, hope lingers still that Spring will once again appear when the coming year rings in tones the bluebells can hear...announcing in due time...will reappear.
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Hi, a very lovely write of October, here in Italy we still have very warm days as if summer tries to take back her crown, I enjoyed this ode very much, all the best in the contest, hugs
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But consider this--if beauty remained unchanged forever, would we appreciate it as much? With the loss, with the cold and drab we are blest with fresh appreciation when colours return!
I cannot keep up with your prolific output and wish it were not after one AM again! It is good to be assured that each is as well worth reading as the ones before, if not more. And all is well, even though days seem to overflow past midnight hours.
Like the seasons, the miracle of the days redeems.
A lovely poem, M!
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Very true, Terry! Monotony is not beautiful, however lovely; we need the contrast.
Thank you for reading any, and many thanks for your comment.
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So different....
This is truly a gorgeous painting.... of November. But I suppose that all depends on where you live (down under they are greeting spring). Here, October is bright reds and yellows, the rich gold/brown of ripe grain, cornucopias, fresh pressed cider, mums and little goblins a-scurry... an elegant lady bedecked in the in the golden rays of slanting sunlight...
I love your imagery and always your smooth flowing rhyme... but I'd be inclined to call \him\ November...
Be ever bright and blessed,
Rahad
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Haha! You did not grow up four hours north of Toronto.
Thank you for your lovely comment about September.
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October #2
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This is beautiful; you have done a marvelous job personifying October in verse. It’s packed with image and motion. Well done!
Love,
Amera♥
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