Deep within a winter wood

A dreaming spirit

Rests

Suspended between worlds

In a cozy den

The trees stand bereft

Of all but the snowy owl

Singing his mournful hoot

Over the banks of white

Dampening his volume

To a ghostly question

The land rests

Readying herself for spring

With a long dormant season

Reviving her roots

And nurturing the soil

Hunger stretches long

In this wilderness of winter

As we nourish the spirit

And shrug ourselves out

Of the last heat to linger

We are reborn

In frost

And multi-faceted snowflakes

Banking our fires

To burn brighter

Once the daylight

Has returned ~ Caroline A. Slee