I am surrounded by change, 

greens going brown, 

burning into translucency,

visible into invisible 

as leaves leave branches

to flitter and float in the air

turning, twisting, 

changing, change, 

change they say, 

change they whisper,

transform, turn too, in turn, turn out,

I was stuck once, in a position, 

positioned between the seams, 

sewn into lines, too structured, too static, 

derailed by demands, dictating designers,

but I have turned too, already, 

I have transformed, turned into transparency. 

I live now in lines, between the pages, 

I appear and disappear at will, at want, 

I am me at times, 

characters at others,

careful, cautious, curious, questioning. 

I am skin and bone, 

I am ageing, like the leaves, 

older, greyer, lighter, 

wilting with the weather, 

but I am sturdy too, 

stronger in other places, 

wizened but wiser.

I am caught in the same current

as the autumn air that lingers, 

lightens and lifts

and carries life onto the next adventure…

All words and photographs by Damien B. Donnelly