The Last Leaf

First published in Frogpond 13:1, February 1990. The “empty swings” verse also appeared in After Shock (San Francisco: Two Autumns Press, 1990). The entire sequence later appeared in Tremors (Foster City, California: Press Here, 1990). See an Italian translation of this sequence by Lucia Fontana. See also my “Holes in the Awning” haibun.

 

 

after the quake

      the weathervane

            pointing to earth

 

 

autumn sun

amid the rubble

quaking aspen

 

 

after the quake

candlelight dinner

 

 

aftershock

tripping on the flashlight

in the dark

 

 

another victim—

laying the body bag

on the flower bed

 

 

aftershock

empty swings

swaying

 

 

nightfall

the last leaf

trembles