Leaves Never Fall With A Bang Poem by Sarah Mkhonza

Slowly, smoothly and with a stealth
That fills the whole lawn in a morning,
The leaves of the trees keep falling,
And just as quietly they lie down to
Rest.

The leaf blower rushes in with noisy
Hurried sound, and pulls them in and
Gracefully, and silently they go. But
Branches break with a squeak, and fall
With a bang that even dents the car
Parked on the pavement, letting us know
That one day, the tree itself will
Come down with a heavy thud,


Once trees shed the leaves, they
Let them go like an unwanted blanket,
And throw them away for they no
Longer need to cover their crown,
In the seasons dry, for such is a
Stingy world, it causes us to throw
Away the immigrant who helped us
Just yesterday at noon.

So ungrateful these tall figures,
Whose wombs will fill up again, and
Like crazy seed the leaves will return,
Budding out with childish joy and gladness,
Crowning them once again with shiny beauty,
Only to once again go the way of the
Soiled diaper, that is discarded never to be
Looked at in these days, where we cannot
Have ourselves sweating in the sun
While washing it with our precious
Hands, ungrateful trees that we have
become.

I chose to go the way of the leaf,
A going smooth and quiet leaving a bit
Of color, in the memory of the world,
For like the leaf once green my
Immature thoughts, may have done this
Deed of gracing the trees of the world.
For even when ejected by the leaf
Blowers of the world, I will go
With a song, marching to the end,
Just like the lonely leaf abandoned.