Chrysanthemums in bloom—as gaunt as ever;
peonies, leaves falling off, seem completely withered.
A locust, frozen nearly to death,
clings desperately to a cold branch.
by Christina PughCloser to a bell than a bird,
that clapper ringing
the clear name
of its inventor:
by turns louder
and quieter than a clock,
its numbered face
was more literate,
triplets of alphabet
like grace ...