October's Bright Blue Weather Poem by Helen Hunt Jackson

October's Bright Blue Weather

Rating: 3.2


O suns and skies and clouds of June,
And flowers of June together,
Ye cannot rival for one hour
October's bright blue weather;

When loud the bumblebee makes haste,
Belated, thriftless vagrant,
And goldenrod is dying fast,
And lanes with grapes are fragrant;

When gentians roll their fingers tight
To save them for the morning,
And chestnuts fall from satin burrs
Without a sound of warning;

When on the ground red apples lie
In piles like jewels shining,
And redder still on old stone walls
Are leaves of woodbine twining;

When all the lovely wayside things
Their white-winged seeds are sowing,
And in the fields still green and fair,
Late aftermaths are growing;

When springs run low, and on the brooks,
In idle golden freighting,
Bright leaves sink noiseless in the hush
Of woods, for winter waiting;

When comrades seek sweet country haunts,
By twos and twos together,
And count like misers, hour by hour,
October's bright blue weather.

O sun and skies and flowers of June,
Count all your boasts together,
Love loveth best of all the year
October's bright blue weather.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Mildred S Hensley 12 November 2011

Like Lorna, I learned this poem in the 4th or fifth grade. It has annually enriched my life I am now 82.

21 1 Reply
Ann 03 October 2021

82 and learned poem in grand school. Also 'A haze on the far horizon, an infinite tender sky, the bright red leaves of autumn and wild geese flying by. By all these lovely tokens, September days are here, with autumns best of weather and summers best of cheer.'

3 0
iamfelix 13 October 2021

It was my mother's favorite poem.

0 0
Lorna Rudisill 25 September 2006

We were required to learn and then recite this poem back in elementary school-that is some 70 years ago and i still think of it every year when October comes around and the air is so crisp and exhilerating.

15 1 Reply
Terry Craddock 07 March 2015

Helen's poem makes me wish I could take a walk with her to embrace these sights, as a second choice a walk with William Wordsworth would do. Something is definitely missing in modern city sidewalks.

10 1 Reply
B.Angela Nichols 17 October 2020

I enjoy all of Helen Hunt Jackson’s poetry. My favorite is September

1 0 Reply
Pat Downey 15 October 2019

Loved this poem always. A nun recited it to us in grade school and it has stayed with me all through the years! It never disappoints!

1 0 Reply
Paresh Chakra 09 December 2018

This is a very gorgeous poem

2 2 Reply
Maureen 18 October 2018

Our 5th grade class learned this poem by heart from a woman who taught elocution lessons. 🍁🍂

0 0 Reply
Jeanine Counselman 08 October 2018

I looked up this poem because I only knew October's bright blue weather. My grandmother used to recite it when I was a child. She had been a school teacher. When I misbehaved, she sat me in a room by myself and made me read Compton's encyclopedia.

2 0 Reply
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Helen Hunt Jackson

Helen Hunt Jackson

Amherst, Massachusetts
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