Dearest favourite fallen friend

Dearest favourite fleeting friend,

You’re living in my hindsight,

The summer bliss won’t reach its end,

Our days forever bright,

Summer scapes hold infinite,

That old Joni record on repeat,

From month to month, so intimate,

Turned empty hands, your harsh conceit,

Harsher than Sacramento terrain,

California’s heart dismembered,

Darker than the sobering rain,

That woke me to September,

My heart a golden, burning leaf,

Bracing for the fall,

My conscience as a fallen fruit,

Trodden down by all,

All who cast their wise concern,

A beacon in the light,

Deaf ears, a child unwilling to learn,

The sacred lessons of young life,

Dearest favourite fallen friend,

My hopes won’t be renewed,

My tendency to comprehend - not send,

Hinged on the last time I saw you