Autumn Haibun

We left October 2nd on an eleven day fall foliage cruise from Boston, sailing up as far as Quebec, Canada. Stops heading north included Rockland, Maine; St. John, Bay of Fundy; Halifax, Nova Scotia; and Quebec City.

I learned about the process of autumn’s becoming from my science classes way-back-when. As temperatures cool and the sun lessens in intensity, trees stop making chlorophyll and leaves begin to change. Metaphorically speaking, I always thought they took on the look of Mother Nature’s cancan skirt! But sadly, in Boston and on this cruise, those magnificent crimsons, oranges, lemon and sunflower bright yellows were nowhere to be seen. Summer’s record high temperatures and extended heat-soaked days delayed the process. Finally, sailing into Quebec City along the St. Lawrence Seaway, disappointment turned to delight and quickly to awe. The coastal views reminded me of fall scenes from the October and November months on my grandmother’s wall calendars. I oohed and aahed at the glorious landscape. This was fall foliage indeed!

pumpkins sit on porch
apple cider warms on stove
leaf peepers delight

Written for Haibun Monday at dVerse, the virtual pub for poets around the globe. Today Frank asks us to write a haibun about the autumn season. A haibun is prose that cannot be fiction, followed by a haiku that includes a word or words that denote a season.

Photos taken two weeks ago on our fall foliage cruise, sailing up the St. Lawrence Sea Way into Quebec City.

9 thoughts on “Autumn Haibun

  1. Melissa Lemay's avatar Melissa Lemay October 23, 2023 / 3:14 pm

    Autumn’s had a slow go in Pennsylvania as well. Love your haibun. Happy you enjoyed your cruise.🛳️

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  2. Björn Rudberg (brudberg)'s avatar Björn Rudberg (brudberg) October 23, 2023 / 3:36 pm

    So glad that you got that fall color, here we mostly just get yellow. Not a lot of maple here, so yellow and brown is what we get.

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  3. kim881's avatar kim881 October 23, 2023 / 3:37 pm

    I enjoyed the trip in your autumn haibun, Lill, and the photos added to it. I also liked the explanation of the process of autumn. ‘Mother Nature’s cancan skirt’ made me smile, as did the pumpkins on the porch. My daughter will be carving pumpkins with Lucas – sadly, I won’t be seeing them until November.

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  4. Gillena Cox's avatar Gillena Cox October 23, 2023 / 6:46 pm

    Awesome!!!

    Much💛love

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  5. pandamoniumcat's avatar pandamoniumcat October 23, 2023 / 7:08 pm

    So glad you were eventually able to see the colours on your trip. 🙂

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  6. rothpoetry's avatar rothpoetry October 23, 2023 / 8:23 pm

    This is really great! Inland leaves change earlier than the east coast!

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  7. pvcann's avatar pvcann October 24, 2023 / 8:15 am

    Science and heart working together, glad you got the wow factor at the end

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  8. sanaarizvi's avatar sanaarizvi October 30, 2023 / 3:28 pm

    Gorgeous photos, Lillian! 😍😍 The haiku at the end leaves me feeling warm and content. 💖💖

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