AUTUMN REFLECTIONS

I stood on the wet sand
On that cold autumn morning
In the autumn of my years
With the breeze off the sea
Chilling my old bones
And gazed out across the bay
To the distant purple hills
Their edges blurred and softened
By the early morning mist
Their indistinct silhouette
Reflected on the moving water
The tidal water pulling at the reflection
As it moved inexorably to the open sea
And seemingly carrying with it
All of my unfulfilled hopes and dreams
With a shiver I turned from the scene
And made my way along the beach
My eyes were drawn to the hillside
Where the sparsely covered trees stand
With the last of the leaves falling
Each fluttering to the ground
Each leaf’s fall symbolic
Like the dates of a calendar
Being peeled off one by one
Ticking off the days of my life
As I head towards my winter