“Driving up the Ohio River on Route 2 in Late Fall” by Larry Smith

This poem is really relatable just because of the time of year and season it is. Fall has a lot of meanings; it’s definitely my favorite season out of them all. Winter is too cold for my tastes, but it is really pretty. Spring is nice, everything is coming back to life but it’s also the season of lots of changes, growing up and moving on- for example, seniors graduating and becoming college kids. Summer is also great, freedom, and the one last burst of fun before you get into the routine of going back to school in the fall.

I love early the fall the most, the trees start changing colors and almost everyone seems to travel up north, especially New Hampshire to see the fall foliage in full “bloom” with all its beautiful colors rolling over the mountains. But then late fall rolls around and things start to get gloomier, the leaves are falling off the trees, making them look bare and dead and everything just looks old and deserted, like the abandoned factories and brown grass in the poem.

Overall, I thought this poem was about people changing like the seasons. The people/couple in the poem feel like they’re getting old and death is coming soon, and they reflect that in the changing of the seasons, describing the slate colors of the trees and sky and how dull and listless it all is. I think the people feel listless and aren’t ready to get old so quickly.