More sestina madness. (trees, leaves, bed, straw, wind, earth)

Samhain Slumber
by Abracadabra 11/8/09

Slumbering autumn trees
release their vivid leaves
covering the flowers in their bed
Squirrels collect some straw
in the brisk vivacious wind
from the fading grassy bosom of the earth

High above the earth
in the canopy of trees
branches whisper secrets to the wind
The vivid ornate leaves
that fall toward the straw
produce a multicolored quilt upon their bed

The flowers in the bed
are now but roots within the earth
their stems and leaves perished into straw
No longer shaded by the trees
yet still protected by their leaves
from the brutal chilling coldness of the wind

Torrents of the wind
rustle blankets on the bed
bringing animated motion to the leaves
Spirit fills the earth
and remains within the trees
and permeates the silent lifeless straw

For what's inside the straw
is a secret in the wind
only known to flowers, squirrels, and trees
What appears to be a bed
on the face of mother earth
is more than just a pile of lifeless leaves

There are worlds within the leaves
and communities in straw
and microbes, gnomes, and fairies in the earth
There are spirits in the wind
and ghosts within the bed
and ancient wisdom in the consciousness of trees

The spirit never leaves, as it's carried by the wind
and straw becomes the soil in the bed
The song of mother earth is carried in the breeze,
as it's sung through generations of the trees