Written for Thursday Inspiration –
“Forever Autumn”
cold leaves fall silent,
an empty bench in the chill,
your touch fades away.
For this week’s Thursday Inspiration, Jim Adams asks us to respond to the challenge in any manner we think works, including using the prompt word ‘colder’, by means of the song “Forever Autumn” by Justin Hayward, or another song that fits the prompt. I’m going with a lovely song by the Edgar Winter Group called simply “Autumn” …. a hauntingly beautiful ballad written and sung by band member and multi-instrumentalist Dan Hartman, featured on the group’s 1972 breakout album, They Only Come Out At Night. The song’s lyrics link the changing of the seasons to the pain and loneliness of romantic rejection. Summer represents warmth, passion, and happiness, while autumn mirrors the cold reality of being left for someone else.
This is “Autumn” by the Edgar Winter Group
Many thanks to Jim Adams for this week’s inspiration. Thanks to you all for stopping by for a look and a listen.
That’s all she wrote, kids.
See you on the flip side. 😎
NAR©2026
Everything on The Elephant’s Trunk was created by me, unless otherwise indicated, and may not be used without permission. Thanks for your consideration. NAR©2017-present.
Very nice haiku and a song I had never heard before.
Autumn has, for a very long time, been my favorite season. Cool evenings, a respite from the scorching sun. Nature showing all of it’s splendor. My favorite foods, favorite smells, favorite sports and favorite holidays.
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Thanks for these gracious and lovely comments, Mark. I’ve begun to appreciate autumn much more in recent years, perhaps because summers lately have been so oppressive. I welcome the short reprieve from the heat and before the frigid winter. I told my husband just last night how nice it is to have low humidity and to sleep with the windows open again. Of course, my favorite holiday of Thanksgiving takes place in the fall and ushers in my next favorite holiday, Christmas.
I’m so pleased you enjoyed both poem and song. ☺️
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I loved your poem, Nancy and thanks for joining in. Your use of cold and silent establishes a somber, wintry atmosphere. The falling leaves represent the end of a cycle, and their silence suggests a lack of resistance or a finality to the change. The bench serves as a symbol of past connection or shared space. It being empty and situated in the chill, feels like a void was left behind and now it is cold, desolate, and unoccupied. Your final line shifts the focus from the external landscape to an internal, sensory memory. It is very sad when the slow loss of physical connection, emotional intimacy, or memory between two people fades away, maybe gradual, and perhaps inevitable, this loss of intimacy or connection, reinforcing the theme of impermanence established by the falling leaves. Your poem progresses from the external world (leaves, bench) to the internal experience (the fading touch), effectively using the setting to externalize the feeling of grief or separation. The Edgar Winter Group song “Autumn” was a perfect fit.
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Thanks very much, Jim; this was a lovely theme. I could not have explained my poem and image any better than that! ✨
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I usually struggle with poetry, but analyzing it is all about embellishment. I try to find what is hidden and decode the meaning I discover.
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You did good!
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Thanks, but you deserve all the credit for writing such a good poem.
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