It is the first day of fall, according to the equinox. In celebration, a list of primal urges I must now address —

1. Embrace heavy rain like a Varied Thrush in the thicket – all song, dance, and bounty.
2. Find freedom in interlaced fingers, goodbye mornings, and kisses that linger longer than the day.
3. Pumpkins – in my oven / dressing my counters /of my latte
4. Hold fallen leaves with a gentle gaze — admiring their freckled skin, their canvas of changed colors, their canvas of change.
5. Simmer orange peels and clove-like roasted marshmallows atop an open flame; meld slow and light.