Skipping and hopping,
from petal to leaf,
chased by beetles,
is a nectar thief!

Jack Frost’s cousin,
Chill, the Fall sprite,
arrives every October,
to the beetle’s fright.

“Stop right now,
you hairy beast!”
Stinkbugs shout
but he flees east.

He turns the nectar,
into golden art,
dabbed on leaves —
summer’s torn apart.

From nectar to mold,
black spots of blight
multiply and dismay,
as he zigzags in flight.

October’s arrived and
Autumn’s show has begun.
Protest though you may,
he will have his fun.

Copyright 2015 Brenda Davis Harsham