October

breathe in the woods
and leave the world behind

something stings, organic blessings
of life turning inward, the slow rapture

that begs you to thrust your hands
deep into the belly of a thousand years

know that you are nothing in such certainty
but falling leaves and dreams

catch yourself worrying about a future
that can never arrive

bury yourself in the sweet decay,
roll about like a child unwed to time

get up and dance with the rules and drama,
spin them off into space

take a bow with your dirty knees
praise the scabs when you were alive

breathe in the what you lost
and shout at the moon that never left you