Tilt of light tells me I’m on the fringe
of autumn, about to enter a multi-colored
carnival of leaves that turn, loop, twist
like amusement park rides. I smell acrid
odor of a burning-leaf pile. I peer out
the window at my neighbor who is standing
guard against renegade flames. I welcome
woodsmoke, will go outside and join him
in a moment. He tells me that he and his
wife are moving toward divorce, their
marriage tarnished with tedium, corroded
with a lack of caring. He tells me a small
crack of unfeeling became apparent
a few years ago, and that crack widened
into a deep fissure of cold indifference.
He rakes more leaves onto the fire
that surges as if he’d poured gasoline on it.
I step back, my face flushed from the rush
of heat. On the one hand, it’s a cozy moment.
On the other hand, his news is similar to
the announcement of a death. I pat him
on the shoulder, know no other comfort
to offer. He rakes more leaves into the fire,
determined to burn what is dead.
R. Nikolas Macioci earned a PhD from The Ohio State University, taught for Columbus City Schools for thirty years. OCTELA, the Ohio Council of Teachers of English, named Nik Macioci the best secondary English teacher in the state of Ohio. Nik is the author of twenty-three books.
