ecargo10 Dec 2002

This is wonderful. I honestly think the "would have you here with me" lines in the first two stanzas weaken them--it's implicit in the "woulds" that he is not, and the penultimate lines are so strong it seems a shame not to let them stand. Maybe it's just me. Also, in the same vein, "badge of New England" is not as strong an image as "autumn's first blood" and seems to detract from it--you're winging south so must be north. I like the pun with Mercury.