Rise

the name is appropriate for its events;
Fall.
life, flowers, leaves;
Fall.
at the weathered hands of nature,
of frost and dew and cold.
hopes, plans, dreams;
Fall.
because the penitentiary beckons:
summer's liberation fades from a jubilant shout,
becomes plain spoken and my voice;
Falls.
freedom is now a desperate whisper until
the stoic winter snows envelop the last breath on my lips;
turns it to visible air,
to silence,
to just a fleeting thought.
i;
Fall.
and wonder why there isn't a season by the name of Rise instead of spring.
for it is not a question of new birth,
but a slowly ascending realization of
i will;
Rise.