Poem for an Approaching Date
In honor of a coming change of date and the Patroness of the Missions (though this poem has nothing whatsoever to do with the latter):
October First
Steven RiddleOld ladies still
cling to September's masts,
climb the rigging
of their laundry lines
to hang sheets that bear
the wind.
They go to captain
old wooden ships driven before
these sails,
to watch as they pass
over the dateline into October.At night they hang
kerosene lanterns
from pegs--a sign to others
passing.Long winter ahead--they signal
over vast seas
that separate each
from her neighbor,
They greet the change
with great woolen shawls pulled over
shriveled shoulders and salute
each other from deck chairs
on the bow.c 2002 Steven Riddle
