First snow fell last night
Light, soft, bright, white
Surprise
The morning changes our eyes
From fall
Falling to sleep
To winter’s deep
Surfacing
To hold us in a dream
Of the last season of the year
I wish you were here
It is almost the day you were born
Your birthday
I still mourn
I still miss you
Home
Christmas
This year I will bring a tree
Bring it home
Drink whisky and tea
And stare out
From my warm house
Into the beautiful
Cold world
The snow is a gift
The snow is a warning
The snow has gathered
And swirled
Danced and landed
Each flake an angel’s curl
Forsaking its unique shape
To fall
A pearl among pearls
To earth
A blanket finding berth
For a moment
Or a day
A bed of beauty
That appears
So real
Before it disappears
I return to you
I go back years
To where you still dance
And swirl
You are young
We laugh like girls
We jump into a sky
Where the future unfurls
Before us
As we plunge
Into a bright, summer lake
Feel the water break
As our bodies disappear
The memory melts
The memory freezes
In time
Returning to snow
My mind frozen
And unfrozen again
As this day opens
And then
A cardinal lands
Like a blood sign
A red heart
An evergreen pine
This moment winds
And unwinds
Before it declares itself
Mine
The symbols align
You arrive
You depart
I find you
I lose you
I forget where to start
There is no ending
I know you by heart
© 2022 Julie Flanders
April is Poetry Month Day 25
Image by: Marina Belica
October Process 