Choosing to

I can choose
to engage with,
to ignore,
to marvel at,
all that autumn offers.
I walk along pavements slippy with fallen leaves,
dirty with all and sundry
then i turn to walk along paths which track straight lines
through the Meadows
and i can kick up the leaves
almost knee-deep in places
i squat down to photograph them
and to sniff the autumn-ness
the pre-requisite for a November bonfire.
I stop to chat with a man resting on his rake
i watch a Big Issue seller selling not begging
laughing not pleading on this bright, fresh Monday.
and i chuckle at the pumpkins, cut out heads
abandoned but happy
burnt-out nightlights inside them
telling their own tale of an evening's fun.