Last of Autumn

By Lisa Stice

where leaves and flowers grew, I cut
so the plants keep through the cold

my activity is heard by the blackbirds
who sound a warning, fly together
to distant perches
                            we each—birds and I—
do what we do for good
  we be / been / gone
preparing for winter is avenged with
urgency / with duty / with a brief cost

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Lisa Stice is a poet, literary activist, mother, military spouse, and the author of four full-length poetry collections: Letters from Conflict (2024), Forces (2021), Permanent Change of Station (2018), and Uniform (2016), and a chapbook, Desert (2018). She is a Pushcart Prize nominee who volunteers with various literary and art organizations, is Associate Editor for Middle West Press, and is the Visual Arts Editor for Collateral Journal. While it is difficult to say where home is, she currently lives in North Carolina with her husband, daughter, and dog. @lisasticepoet