My mind soars 

over a landscape outside 

and within, 

my body a topographical map

of freckles and stretch marks 

stretching toward purpose 

that can only be found 

nestled in the quiet of sleeping autumn leaves 

of stubborn fungi 

grasping to the remnants 

of warm summer days 

bracing for the cold

that will pluck them 

from the earth

in the coming days 

and in the coming months 

that seem to span lifetimes 

of life reborn 

and life laid to rest 

until the ground thaws 

beneath.