The half-converted sugar maples stand
Awaiting orders to break into flame.
For now, they are half-glory and half-shame—
And always straining to hear the command.
October looms. The air should be cold steel
Against bare skin. Instead, it’s dense
With sweat and wool held, for now, in suspense,
As the world longs for autumn’s great repeal.
But what’s the hurry? When at last it comes,
It can’t last long. Autumn will fall, I know,
To winter, and, in falling, strip the world
Of this brightness. There’s beauty, too, in snow,
But let’s slow down. Enjoy the final curl
Of heat, before winter straightens the plumb.
Indian summer
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America’s editors on the ground in Rome discuss the latest conclave news and the work that remain for whoever is elected as Pope Francis’ successor.
Much of what you hear about who the next pope will be, spoken with enormous confidence by people in the know, is often completely contradictory.
Cardinals Rosa and Sako said they expect the conclave to be brief and last two to three days. While not revealing a name, Cardinal Sako said he already had a “very clear” idea of who he intended to vote for.
All 135 cardinals who are under the age of 80 and have not renounced the right to enter the conclave will have full voting rights.