Opal Reflections
Perspectives through Prose, Poetry and Photography
With Pen in Hand…
“Every man is guilty of all the good he didn’t do.” Voltaire
As autumn swings into its waning arc,
I’m thoughtful, as in days and times of yore,
Reminding, with its ‘Technicolor’ parks,
Dismissing summer ‘lush’ that came before.
The parable for life, renewed once more,
As leaves hang loosely, breezes, softly sway,
And clinging only by a stem (no more),
Bear witness, as their ‘tree sibs’ float away.
With golden, crimson, purple deep arrays,
The greenest leaves remain until their time,
And nests uncovered, bared and on display
As soaring hawks swoop low for prey, then climb.
Man chooses to compose his legacy
A leaf-ling has no choice, save just ‘to be’.
***
I used the Light and Shade challenge this week and Voltaire’s insightful observation, as my inspiration for this sonnet.
Autumn does, indeed, cause me to become more reflective, and as I enjoyed the brilliant foliage here in New Jersey, I could not help but notice that while a profusion of brightly colored leaves fall gently (inevitably) to the ground, a few stubborn ‘greenies’ remain attached, swaying in the gentle October breezes, and hanging on, as if by an invisible thread.
Unlike the falling leaves, the changing of the seasons, and inexorable march of time, ‘man’ has a choice; not about the circumstance of his birth or death, but in how he fills the pages of the volume that become his life story, and ultimately his legacy.
This post, and the other posts written in response to this challenge, can be found here: http://lightandshadechallenge.blogspot.com
6 Comments on “With Pen in Hand…”
I'd appreciate your feedback (Please, leave a comment)!
Lighthouse in the Mist, Cape May, NJ
Bandit
Festive View from the Pub, Peddler’s Village – Lahaska, PA.
Home Sweet Home
Opal Reflections 
I am so fond of a good sonnet, and this is a good sonnet, the words flowing easily through the form and painting such a lovely picture.
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THank you, Thomas. Your comments are always appreciated.
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That was beautiful and very thought provoking!
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thank you – watching that dangling leave was thought provoking. I do love the Fall. thanks for commenting.
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I like the opening quote – there is so much that is left undone. We do have control over our destiny, but sometimes it seems we just be (like the leaves.)
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I love the opening quote as well! Destiny – a funny thing, since even when we do nothing, it’s we who decide to just “be’ Thanks.
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