Autumn Nuptials

I walk along the pathway
Where Mother Nature's parasols
Opened expansively just a few months ago
To protect me from the scorching rays
Of Summer's courtship.

But now the gold and orange-hued remnants
Of the wind-whipped canopies
Are scattered on the ground, as if she-
Mother Nature-prepares to escort me
Down the Autumn's colored aisle.

With each steady step, I move forward
Toward the impatient Old Man Winter
Awaiting his bride… anxious
To strip away
What he thinks is his.

Secretly, I long for budding Springtime
When my soul will blossom into
Fullness of life and love and hope.
And with steeled emotion, I brace myself…
For Winter's ravage.