Leafy Lament
I’m raking leaves and raking leaves,
scrape, scrape, scraping leaves;
reds and oranges, greens and yellows,
all the crispy, crunchy fellows
in soft piles under the big
Mulberry trees.
Leaves are falling all around me,
on my head, before, behind me,
making mockery of my raking,
all my nice green lawn o’ertaking.
It’s a leafy, leafy world
as the trees their glory hurl.
Oh, I need a vacuum sweeper
or a giant tree-leaf eater.
–Catherine Lawton
This poem was written a number of years ago before our neighborhood had leaf blowers. Extracted here from the book, Remembering Softly: A Life In Poems. This post was first published five years ago. I thought we could all use a little humor again.
Photo © Can Stock Photo, BackyardProduct
I doubt even a giant tree-leaf eater would be able to shred our tough oak leaves. We have seven huge oak trees blanketing our lawn with their leaves. But I’m not complaining. I love our oak trees. Three of them are struggling with bacterial leaf scorch. Praying they don’t die.