Young Writers Project is a creative, online community of teen writers and visual artists that started in Burlington in 2006. Each week, VTDigger publishes the writing and art of young Vermonters who post their work on youngwritersproject.org, a free, interactive website for youth, ages 13-19. To find out more, please go to youngwritersproject.org or contact Executive Director Susan Reid at sreid@youngwritersproject.org; (802) 324-9538.
One moment you’re wiping beads of perspiration from your lip and creemee from your chin, and the next, all but the last of the trees have shed their amazing technicolor dreamcoats. Fall: Blink, and it’s over. As the wind whistles and the leaves dance, this week’s featured poet, Maelyn Slavik of Burlington, gazes out upon the evanescent beauty of a New England landscape dressed in its autumn best.
The orchestra of fall
By Maelyn Slavik, 13, of Burlington
Autumn leaves flutter around my head,
the colors popping in the chilly,
swirling air.
The veins stretch out,
delicate within the leaves.
They connect,
creating a web of beauty:
a beautiful array of pulses,
slightly erratic,
but the imperfections even more breathtaking.
I turn my head toward the mountains,
the little dots that are the trees colorful,
watercoloring the landscape with warm,
cheerful colors that are unpredictable,
strange.
The cool, brisk air slaps my cheeks,
the rhythmic gusts blowing my hair,
making it swirl and dance along with the leaves.
The symphony of the parts fold together,
the layers clashing in some ways
but synchronizing perfectly in others.
The melody is incredible,
vibrant but soft,
strong but heartwarming,
unique but blended.
Each and every part complements another,
everything fitting yet popping,
creating the orchestra of fall.
