October and November

 

Welcome to the Spot Writers. This month’s prompt is to write a story involving one or more of the following: a pumpkin, a cold wind, rustling leaves, a scarecrow, candy wrappers, someone in costume. This weeks offering comes from the pen of Phil Yeats

 

In September 2026, Phil published Follow the Hearse, the fourth book in his Barrettsport Mysteries, a series of soft-boiled mysteries set in a fictional South Shore, Nova Scotia town. For information about this book and all his others, visit his website: https://alankemisterauthor.wordpress.com/.

 

October and November

by Phil Yeats

 

I rather like October with all its colourful leaves.
The reds and golds, the browns and oranges.
The days are pleasantly cool
with few, if any, frosty nights.
And Halloween, my favourite celebration of the year.
Kids, some so small they can barely walk,
all dressed in costumes, some simple, some not.
The prize in my house went to a matching pair
dressed as Loraxes from Dr. Seuss.
A scarecrow came second.
Yes, October is a month I rather enjoy.

 

I can’t say as much for November.
I wake to smashed pumpkins on sidewalks
that I feel compelled to clean up.
And all the Halloween decorations that must come down
after just one day of splendid adoration.
Then, the rustling leaves land on pathways and lawns.
Colours not so appealing when I’m raking them up.
And all the candy wrappers I must separate
or the recycling Gestapo descends on me.
The winds are colder, the nights, frostier.
I can no longer pretend winter
isn’t around the corner.
Plenty of reasons for preferring October over November.
Need I say more?

 

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The Spot Writers:

Val Muller: http://www.valmuller.com/blog/

Catherine A. MacKenzie: https://writingwicket.wordpress.com

Phil Yeats: https://alankemisterauthor.wordpress.com/

Chiara De Giorgi: https://chiaradegiorgi.blogspot.com/