Last red leaf of autumn
With all the rest turned brown
How did you come to be here
Still crimson on the ground?

Was it blind chance that left you
Hanging lonely on the tree?
Or were you extra stubborn
Like mules and goats (and me)?

Did you feel the cold wind 
And see your brothers fall
Then cling on extra tightly
And refuse to hear the call?

And in the bitter ending
When you saw you were alone
Did you feel a surge of triumph
Or shiver cold at the unknown?

Was it hard to finally let go
To feel your grip slipping away?
Or did it come as a relief
To float off into skies so grey?

It seems no more than wasted effort
That short delay of common doom
But, oh my last red leaf of autumn
You shine so brightly in the gloom