Mid-September and mass exodus
as if they had it all thought out
booked by an efficient travel agent
organized by a group leader
or perhaps a volunteer swallowtailI saw the monarchs congregating
on wildflowers near the railroad tracks
and the noonday sky never looked so blue
as behind those butterflies
their tint of AutumnDoes the monarch migration
signal the true end of summer
and not as we suspected
the return of the Ex or of the refusal
to wear white after Labour Day?I want to wear orange
rich deep burnt-orange with black trim
and make the journey to Mexico
with them~ c.p.grisold