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Magical,
mystical, wonderful snow;
shimmers by day,
and at night's all
aglow.
Intricate flakes
gently blanket the land,
while nature rests,
under
the spell of the
The Sandman.
December 24, 1998
As daylight dwindles.
Moon comes to play,
at the end of a winter day.
One by one,
the stars emerge
soon.
Orion dances with
the man in the moon!
December 24, 1998
Up before dawn to
greet the day
Casey and I, we
slip away.
Back to the woods
we beat our hooves,
to watch night turn
into day.
Christmas dawns in
the wintery wood,
as an orange glow,
low in the sky.
Not a creature is
stirring, at this early hour,
'cept my trusty
companion and I.
"All is calm, and
all is bright,"
like on that first
Christmas morn.
Silence and solitude
warm my soul,
and, with joy, my
heart do adorn!
December 25, 1998
The woods are dressed,
in their Christmas
best,
with a lovely, light
dusting of white.
Such modest, yet
grand, decorating,
is a glorious, heavenly
sight!
December 25, 1998
Whiskers are covered
with crystals of ice,
as breath meets
the cold air of dawn.
Case lives to run
free in the forest,
...where we both
feel as if we belong.
December 25, 1998
Humber River, suspended
in time;
A channel of tarnished
pewter;
Until the warm rays
of Spring come along,
to free the Humber
from winter.
December 26, 1998
Jack Frost always
amazes and delights,
with artwork that
magically
appears overnight.
Glass is his canvas
and ice is his paint.
He draws lines and
patterns;
intricate shapes.
Jack's crystal images,
etched in the cold,
rival the works
of Renoir and Van
Gogh.
December 27, 1998
'Tis the season,
the sun hangs low
in the sky,
enlarging the landscape;
playing tricks on
the eye.
Immense, gray columns
criss-cross the
snow;
even small seedlings,
huge shadows do
throw!
December 28, 1998
Stark silhouette;
Black on white...
Leafless tree,
Backlit by sunlight.
December 29, 1998
Arctic blast
brings the birds
to our yard.
Life in the out
of doors
must be so hard.
With the mercury
dipping,
and icy winds whipping,
the birds feast
all day,
to keep cold at
bay.
Arctic blast
brings the birds
to our yard...
December 30, 1998
Small, round pellets,
much like snow,
The gale, upon my
window, blows.
Their gentle knocking
bids me come,
And join them in
some wintery fun!
December 31, 1998
The north-wind kicks
up clouds of white.
Its frigid air packs
quite a bite.
Some people say,
"what a beastly day,"
but I say, "let's
go out and play!"
Let's bundle-up
in polar fleece,
and run and jump
with the wintery beast.
What better way
to feel alive,
than to venture
forth... at -25?!
January 1, 1999
A blizzard looms
large on the radar
screen...
the birds already know.
All day long they've
been gorging
themselves,
anticipating the snow.
Soon, they'll ride
out Mother Nature's
storm,
in the arms of one of her pines.
She provides for
the needs of her little
ones...
she guides and protects their lives.
January 2, 1999
Rain,
announces its presence,
with a patter upon
the roof.
But snow sneaks-up,
like a thief in
the night:
stealthy, silent,
aloof.
Flake upon flake
becomes drift upon
drift,
as snow gently settles
on land.
Transforming drab,
brown
into glittering
white,
with a wave of snow's
wondrous hand.
January 3, 1999
The snow on the road
is like cookie dough,
eight or nine inches
deep.
It crumbles and shifts
under tire or foot...
and looks good enough
to eat!
January 4, 1999
Slip-
slidin'
down
the
hill...
sledding
can
be
such
a thrill!
January 5, 1999
Whispy, satin clouds
smeared across the
blue:
a watercolour masterpiece
of richly blended
hues...
what an awesome
sky!!
January 6, 1999
Gleaming rows of
crystal spears,
menacing dragon's
teeth,
cascade downward perilously,
from archways and
from eaves...
These glassy, frozen
sculptures,
known as icicles,
are most impressive
to behold
...winter miracles.
January 7, 1999
Giant, fluffy snowflakes,
swirl about in the
air,
unaware of gravity,
as they dance without
a care!
January 8, 1999
Tracks, in the snow,
tell a story,
of a winter creature's
day...
a rare glimpse into
a secret life,
of work, and caution,
and play.
Some tracks share
the epic,
of a creature's
quest for food;
of hunting or of
foraging,
in groups, or in
solitude.
Others reveal the
saga,
of a creature's
flight from harm;
of dashing to find
shelter,
at the first sign
of alarm.
Still others tell
the wonderful tale,
of exploration and
fun;
of a creature, at
home in the great outdoors,
enjoying the freedom
to run.
Reading these varied
stories,
by seeking-out nature's
clues,
is a lost art, an
adventure,
and a joy, understood
by few...
January 9, 1999
Snow as high as
an elephant's eye,
the land's contours
do modify:
molehills to mountains;
fields to plateaus;
wind-swept drifts
that ebb and flow;
valleys, looking
high and dry...
"a little white
lie," exemplified!
January 10, 1999
A foreboding cloud
looms overhead.
Some flee the park, with a sense of dread.
Those of us who
stay behind,
are in for quite
a treat...
scores of flakes
burst from the sky;
a thick, white wintery
sheet!
January 11, 1999
The fence posts
have donned toques of white...
little snowy caps,
so bright.
They greet me
as I walk to work,
and send a smile
my way.
January 12, 1999
Pine
and
spruce
bend
low;
with the
weight
of
more new snow...
I
wonder
how
much they can
take;
before
this load,
their
boughs,
will
b
r
e
a
k
.
.
.
January 13, 1999
Eight little starlings
huddle on a sill,
surviving by instinct
and sheer will.
With wind chills
nipping,
and daylight dipping,
they pool their
heat,
and hunker-down,
to sleep.
Rest well, little
ones...
goodnight.
January 14, 1999
An amazing substance,
is powder snow...
water, converted
to fluff!
Light and airy;
shifting like sand
when'ere the wind
huffs and puffs.
Equally wondrous
is packing snow...
water, converted
to slush.
Heavy and sticky;
immovable,
like day-old oatmeal
mush!
January 15, 1999
Milder days, in
the midst of the freeze,
change flakes to
clear, flowing glass.
It runs o'er the
land,
as crystals disband,
and reminds us that
this too shall pass...
January 16, 1999
The sun burns its
way,
through
the icy haze,
and smiles upon
the snow fields,
this
January day.
So powerful the
glow,
off
the pearly snow,
that eyes wince,
and turn away,
from
the blinding glow.
Through squinting
slits, again I turn,
to
gaze upon the scene.
A more breath-taking,
dazzling sight,
there
has seldom been:
a zillion gorgeous
diamonds,
energized
by light,
each gleam and glisten,
with
radiant delight!
January 17, 1999
Thunder rumbles,
at first dawn,
bringing
rain our way.
Drizzling, dripping,
trickling,
are
the order of the day.
White mountains shrivel,
like
"The Wicked Witch" of Oz,
and lowlands become
waterways,
amid
such winter thaws...
January 18, 1999
Winter's raw breath
howls
through the trees;
they shake, and
shiver, and moan.
The mighty gale
rips
the remnants of fall
from the branches
on which they
had
grown.
And sends these leaves
and
other debris
flying to parts
unknown...
Winter's raw breath
from the northwest
is a frigid, relentless
cyclone.
January 19, 1999
Billows on the horizon,
bring to mind a
mountainous land:
a place with enormous
snow-capped peaks,
glacier-fed rivers,
and inclines, steep,
Grizzlies, goats
and Bighorn Sheep,
a wilderness, steps
from these city streets.
But alas, it's all
an illusion...
just clouds, and
nothing more.
January 20, 1999
The blue glow of
twilight snow,
under a crescent
moon,
is a portrait of
serenity,
that inspires wild
hearts to croon...
January 21, 1999
Drizzle spray paints
the snowfields,
with a crispy crust
of glaze;
a fragile skin that
cracks, and caves in,
with each footstep
that I take.
Rough edges tug
at my ankles,
as I pull each boot
from its hole.
Traversing the land
is not easy, today...
but it's very good
for the soul.
January 22, 1999
As snow banks continue
to shrivel and shrink,
amid this mid-winter
melt,
bushes awaken and
stretch their twigs,
under mountains
'neath which they've long dwelt...
and dig, to free
themselves from their cold tomb;
to reach delicate
arms to the sky.
In triumph, they
shout to all who can hear,
"Look at me, world!
I'm still alive!"
January 23, 1999
Robins in the snow,
look so out of place,
eking
out a living, in this frigid space.
Spindly little legs,
unfit for the cold...
such
a pitiful sight to behold.
Fly south robins,
to a warmer clime,
and
don't return until it's Springtime!
January 24, 1999
New snow flutters
earthward,
to shroud winter's
tired, old face;
concealing bumps
and blemishes,
with fresh coat
of satin and lace.
January 25, 1999
The calm before
the forecast' storm,
is eerie to behold:
the sun is shining,
without care,
a gentle breeze
is in the air,
the temperature
is oddly fair;
but just beyond
the horizon,
looms a winter stranglehold...
January 26, 1999
Ice splinters, underfoot;
shatter, snap and
squeak,
trudge, trudge,
trudge, trudge,
crunch and crackle,
creak!
January 27, 1999
I'm dreamin' of winter
adventures with you,
my fellow wilderness
heart;
of simple pleasures
and profound joys,
that only nature
imparts.
I'm dreamin' of leaving
the world behind,
upon your snowmobile;
of scenic vistas
and animal tracks,
and silence that
is surreal.
I'm dreamin' of sitting
in the snow,
sharing a Thermos
of stew,
and frozen pieces
of your French Bread...
a pleasure enjoyed
by few.
I'm dreamin' of crawling
into our tent,
the first time we
winter-camp,
and wondering if
we've lost our minds,
as we zip-up, and
turn out the lamp.
Such pleasures and
joys await us, G.,
just over a distant
hill;
solitude, together...
enjoying the winter
chill!
January 6 and 27,
1999
I never saw winter's
grand subtleties,
before you entered
my heart.
You've helped me
come to know winter,
as a wonderful work
of art!
Thank you for inspiring
me, so,
with your "kindredness,"
and your love.
These forty poems,
I return to you,
as a token of my
true love...
January 28, 1999 |
