“If I had an extra November day: A Collaboration” by Nolcha Fox and Barbara Leonhard

I’d play in the leaves
I piled up the day before,
eat another slice
of pecan pie.
I’d light the candle
in the pumpkin
one more night.
How nice to have
an extra day of fall
before the winter
lays its icy hand upon
the barren branches.

A day to lay aside 
those things I’ve buried inside
my closets, drawers and cedar chest.
Forgotten bits of my life,
bundles of burdens,
to stow into recycling bags
as I’ve outgrown my past.

All those things I’ve stuffed 
inside my chest, the past
that weighs me down,
I open my mouth, let fly
what I’ve outgrown
on this November 31.

Let fly like bluebirds
singing hope and joy
on this mysterious day
suddenly visible.
Just for me?
A gift of extra time.

Copyright © 2023 Nolcha Fox and Barbara Leonhard

All Rights Reserved

Nolcha’s poems have been published in Lothlorien Poetry Journal, Alien Buddha Zine, Medusa’s Kitchen, and others. Her poetry books are available on Amazon. Nominee for 2023 Best of The Net. Editor for Open Arts Forum. Accidental interviewer/reviewer. Faker of fake news. Website: https://bit.ly/3bT9tYu. A review of her latest book, Memory is that raccoon” can be found here. 

Barbara is author of Three-Penny Memories: A Poetic Memoir (EIF- Experiments in Fiction, 2022). A poem from this collection was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2022. Also, on Spillwords, Barbara was voted Author of the Month of October 2021, nominated Author of the Year for 2021, and recognized as a Spillwords Socialite of the Year in 2021. In November 2022, she became Editor for MasticadoresUSA. Barbara enjoys bringing writers together and has been sponsoring open mics and readings on Zoom during the pandemic.

Featured Image: The contest image for https://evilsquirrelsnest.com/2023/03/05/the-tenth-annual-contest-of-whatever/. Nolcha and I are competing. What would you do with an extra day in November?

Facebook: Barbara Harris Leonhard /barbara.leonhard; Twitter: @BarbaraLeonhar4; Instagram: @meelosmom123; Linked In: ExtraordinarySunshineWeaver; Mastodon: @BarbaraLeonhard@msdtn.social

Divider Image: by GDJ on Pixabay