September Dawned
(Metaphors of a Life)


September dawned with a cry, six for six, 
In the midst of a northern harvest 
As I, a girl among girls, breathed the breath of life 
Following in the path of a newly waxing moon. 

I slept beneath the shelter of towering pines displaced, 
As they were, just as my father before me, 
To the distant lullaby of a haunting train whistle 
Harmonizing with the call of the wild. 

I ran with the wind in my hair through fresh cut fields, 
The scent of summer eternally imprinted on my mind 
And I climbed to the pinnacle, fearless, to feel what birds feel
Yet I met fear face to face in a dark and lonely space. 

September dawned with the ringing of bells 
And I learned who I was in a crowded room 
Where things remembered and things forgotten 
Combined to teach me who I would become 

I watched lives changed by the repeating of vows, 
Learned faith by the harmony of baritone and piano 
And cried the morning the music died 
When a watercolour world was silenced forever. 

I travelled a long road in the dead of winter 
To garner knowledge where there are no falls, 
Felt old with the advent of the new 
And picked up my pen to write 

September dawned with a new backdrop, 
I became a number with a string of letters after my name 
And took the health of others in my hands 
Peering through leaded glass 

I carried white flowers wearing a white dress, 
Tasted life in the shadow of a big lake; 
Searched for the old and welcomed the new 
Counting fingers and toes on a pint-sized version of me; 

I packed and unpacked boxes to return to my roots 
Where one branch would become three 
And the sounds of the ivories filled my senses again 
And I sat at my desk to write. 

September dawned with the ringing of bells, 
Life turned full circle, once a daughter now a mother 
Following small footprints through trials and triumphs; 
Celebrating accomplishments both large and small 

I built three small ships, stocking them with knowledge, 
Fashioning their sails out of insight and values,
And did my best to teach them how to find the wind 
As they learned who they were 

I opened my eyes to new definitions for old words 
Recognized an unfamiliar woman in the mirror 
Turned my face to the wind once again 
And found me as the dust blew away

September dawned with the beginnings of change 
As the first ship set sail with a girl’s maiden voyage 
And boys became men to look up to 
Sometime while I wasn't looking 

Now as the first ship raises cap and gown on the mast
And the second sails into uncharted waters 
I am still writing, for the rest of this script 
Is yet to be written  


march 2009
Janet Reid