gifts can be quiet – . maybe a decoration . that lights a cold night
as the winter winds . rattle the windows, the cat . tucks in for a nap
after a snowstorm . the sidewalk doesn’t exist . until it is cleared
with winter branches . free of its leaves, the tree still . cannot reach the moon
what if birds are spies . watching human behavior . and filing reports
walking in a dream . light snow crunching underfoot . the trees are patient
the details get lost . muffled in uncertainty . when a fog rolls in
the days of long nights . are made for introspection . and really good naps
the winter sunrise . teases with its warming light . but it is a trick
in each tangled branch . the story was influenced . by outside forces
uptown jack 