Three deer slipped through
The dust of dusk
To greet me
As I was coming home
The wild turkeys were all there
To meet me
Where road rose up to row of stone
And pasture swooped and dipped
To have me follow
Across the hill and overland
As country lane went on forever
And bent my way and took my hand
And I was happiest to trod it
To feel the lightness in it’s step
A partner in my quest for solace
A path to wander from regret
And stars were brighter
In reflection
A million shining stories told
As sky of midnight blue and silver
Danced into midnight black
And gold
And now the night is mine forever
In all it’s creatures and it’s calm
And I can walk for miles
And memories
And hold them softly in my arms



Sara Mathews     October 2015

The geese are on the red eye flight
A sailor’s warning call
No time to waste
Falls through the dark
Make haste
Make haste they call
The frost is on the morning
And is sharpening the blade
And leaves are falling fast
Like tears
To weep with autumn rain
And rivers of the aftermath
Are flowing down the street
As I go wading carelessly
Through currents drifting by
The reds and yellows break to brown
And summer’s fade is fleet
But sadness is a boon tonight
As is the farewell cry
And nothing is a sweeter sound
Than leaves that rush
Beneath my feet
And geese that trail across the moon
In echoes
Down the midnight sky



Sara Mathews     October  2015

I walk beside on
Well worn path
And follow every bend
Of stream
A quiet brook that strolls
And wends
It’s summer way
Through shady glen
And dappled gallery
And like the hush
Of famous halls
The soft museum voices
Of her water
Whisper of your memories
Rolling gently over riverbed
She curates you through centuries
Carrying echoes of your
Footfall in her tales
I step in reverence on this path
Of silent moccasin
And farmer’s homespun
And we walk along together
On the ancient fallen needles
Of the past
We tread our way in
Perfect solitude
As she threads our steps
Together
And I listen to your stories
From the river



Sara Mathews    October 2015

The curtains float on
Breaths of day
Inhale
Exhale
Oak leaves sway
September sun
October rain
The sweets of summer
Softly wane
Purple aster
Wild grape
A golden flower
Echoes sun
And jewels of frost
Intensify
The depth and truth
Of colors won
A honk from travelers
On high
Who bid farewell
To winter folk
Junco
Cardinal
Chickadee
Be warm
Be well
They stitch a vee
Of noisy song
To southern sky
We shield our eyes
And follow them
With rooted feet
And hearts that fly
The curtains float
On breaths of day
Inhale
Exhale
Oak leaves sway
And let go
With a wistful sigh

Sara Mathews    October 2015

A scarlet pose you struck
Upon the vine
That dried and withered
To a skeleton
Without a hint of green
But somehow you endured the touch of frost
That old refrain
‘Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’
Leapt to mind
As you held on and glowed beneath the waning
Autumn sun
And stopped me in my walk
To capture your persistence in a frame of
Photograph and thought
And left me with a hope that lingers still
Survival is dependent on the will



Sara Mathews     October 2015

Photo by Ingrid Mathews

I swam a last goodbye
To summer
In October
And as I waded in
I saw
The lake belonged to me
No other soul
Had ventured in to share
The cold
A row of clear September nights
Bestowed
I didn’t saunter in
But made the plunge at once
As now or never
A momentary second thought
Engulfed me with the chill
But when I dove down deep
I found a bit of summer heat
Had made an ardent stand
Against the siege
And I dug my toes into the sand
To find more summer still
And feeling reassured
I set out for the middle of the lake
And from this vantage point
I saw again
I was the only one to venture in
And I wondered why the others left
Too soon it seemed to me
But then
Not even call of loon was there
To keep me company
Or break my solitude
As quiet echoed over empty lake
And cottages around the rim
Resigned and sighed and settled back
To hibernate within the pine
I wondered if the fishes thought me strange
Or whispered to each other
That I was out of season
In this calendar
Where blueberry leaves

Foretold the end
In scarlet flame along the shore
A burnished frame around the edge
Of languid days
And birches flashed in gold leaf coins
To signal summer spent
And now only the maples wait
But soon enough will
Acquiesce and follow suit
And red and coral flags
Will wave a last farewell
And that will be my cue
To make a fall surrender too



Sara Mathews      October 2015                                                                                                        

                                                              Photo by Ingrid Mathews


We talked of nighthawks
You asked if I remembered them on
Summer nights
We walked the darkened streets where
City lights were not enough
To make us feel secure
The gloom was swirling with the shadows
Of discomfiture
And it was late
I had my little dog to see me home
But you set out alone
The final stretch
As I had more to cross  on my return
And hurried where I felt the chill
Of unfamiliar at my back
My neck felt prickly at times
With pins and needles of the
Neighborhood unknown
But as our home grew near
We settled in to being with the night
And all the shadows disappeared
Except a sudden
Silent flight
That swept across our path
I thought I felt the whisper of a wing
So close this thing
A stealthy pass
Of one who owns the dark
No fear or trepidation did I have
No bark from little dog
Protecting me
Just awe
To be with such distinguished company
And feeling quite escorted
Slowed our steps
And drifted happily
Our thoughts unwound in
Summer nighthawk reverie



Sara Mathews     October 2015

A bird of darkness

Has come to rest

Within my chest

He perches on my heart

Pinching me with talons sharp

And conquering

With one black feathered flag

I saw him sailing in 

And circling for

Landing

I tried to wave him off

I made all sorts of flapping

Clapping

Shooing

Shouting

Crazy like a scarecrow

Moves

To chase this dour fellow

From my day

But he is resolute

And clings to me

For morbid company

And rudely

Overstays   

Sara Mathews     September 2015