Feeling Autumn

the scent of caramel streams
in the air over burnt pecans
and brown sugar dreams
crystalized into tears held still
and silent like the
sap on a crying maple tree

and the sweet savory smoke
from the pasture no longer there
and the leaves in the barrel
down the street warming the
man's frozen fingers
as they crumble in the glowing heat
to embers lighting his face

the cold air keeps me warm
since I cuddle inside your sweater
that holds in my heat like a comfort
from within me and I catch my moments
in a cloud of breath held aloft in the air
before condensing into beads
of moisture on your skin