FOREVER AUTUMN

To never savour autumn
Or smell the burning leaves,
Sniff the scent of pollen.
From flowers and the trees

To hear the children's laughter,
Of innocents at play,
See the red of a sunset
At the finish of your day.

To hold a new-born babe,
As you shelter from the rain
Experience love and tenderness,
Or the heartache and the pain

All these things and more,
Have I briefly been aware,
But too never savour autumn?

©Copyright 2004 by James McE. Love

Author’s Note: We landed in the Falklands in May. The seasons were arse about in the Southern Hemisphere, and in the south Atlantic we actually arrived at the start of their winter. So we had winter at home in England, and were now going back to winter in the Falklands, and there was a possibility that it might not be over till Christmas, which would have meant a third winter. It just seemed to be full time autumn: Capt Chris Dent's wife had just given birth to a baby but he was killed during the battle for Darwin Hill. For him it is Forever Autumn