The Sound of Autumn

What does it sound like when the world turns golden brown?

It's the warm swell of a trombone on a Nat King Cole record,

the sharp crunch of foliage on pavement,

the whir of a pencil sharpener,

each yellow stem unfurling like a marigold in June.

What is the key of the October breeze?

The snap of a twig under the deer's foot,

the soft brush of fingers on a yellowing page,

crackling of embers in the pit of a backyard fire.

And what is the song that welcomes Winter:

The hum of a percolator stirring itself awake,

The stillness of a frost-whispered morning,

The world at the bend of a turning page.