September
AUTUMN SONG
My Life is but a leaf upon the tree—
A growth upon the stem that feedeth all.
A touch of frost—and suddenly I fall,
To follow where my sister-blossoms be.
The selfsame sun, the shadow, and the rain
That brought the budding verdure to the bough,
Shall strip the fading foliage as now,
And leave the limb in nakedness again.
My life is but a leaf upon the tree;
The winds of birth and death upon it blow;
But whence it came and whither it shall go,
Is mystery of mysteries to me.
John B. Tabb
September First
Around me blight, where all before was bloom!
And so much lost! alas! and nothing won;
Save this—that I can lean on wreck and tomb,
And weep—and weeping pray—Thy will be done.
Abram J. Ryan
(The Prayer of the South)
General Hood evacuates Atlanta, 1864
September Second