Towards the Warmth of Spring
The skies overhead hung low,
Filled with heavy gray clouds.
Sharp shards of ice
Shrapneled down from above,
Making a weighted and broken sound
As they struck the ground.
I sighed by my window
And gathered my things
To prepare for a journey
Through an unseasonable chill.
Once outside,
My cold feet carried me slowly past a garden
Lost in a frozen slumber.
Soft, supple tulips in shades of pink there.
Just near,
Celebratory yellow and white daffodils
Whose faces were cheering with the bright blue skies and sun
Only days ago.
Green shoots of prolific catnip.
Vibrant and cerulean delphiniums
Springing from the blood of a fallen legendary hero.
A simple yellow primrose
Half devoured by the local well-fed rabbits.
Everything covered in a frost
That blanketed the riotous signs of spring.
A bizarre blanket
That brought the cold with it.
I treaded towards the woods.
Winds howled
And my heavy coat and hood
Did what they could
To keep me warm.
Slow, quiet steps
Between my shivers,
I trudged on.
Upon reaching the great wall of trees,
I thanked them
For bearing the forest
From the brunt of the gusts.
Small amounts of snow, ice, and frost
Everywhere.
Everywhere burying spring.
Along the short and simple path,
I thought about Persephone
And her fated pomegranate aril.
Did she taste another overnight?
Was the sweet, tangy allure too strong?
Red and supple and translucent
Like a siren’s song in fruit.
Was she momentarily whisked back away
To the underworld?
Maybe,
As Hades walked all around me,
Dooming the many buds and flowers
To his realm.
I hope he enjoys them
As their time here in these woods
Was too all too brief.
I came upon a massive ancient evergreen
With almost Runic patterns creating its bark.
An old and giant knot formed near the base,
Just at a human’s height,
Wide enough to leave an offering.
I reached into my pockets
And pulled out a small orange
So bright and almost blasphemous
In its exuberant color.
Sun kissed in and by a land far away
That knows no snow or frost,
I kissed it, too,
And left it inside the mouth of the tree.
From my other pocket,
I drew a small satchel
And emptied the contents into my trembling and reddened palm.
I cast my hand forward, releasing an offering of last summer’s herbs toward the tree.
Lavender,
Mugwort,
Basil,
They were quickly carried away on the currents of cold air.
I knelt down in front the evergreen,
My knees grinding into the cold and frosted ground,
And offered a prayer:
“Oh spirits of winter,
It is time for you to depart.
The north calls you now.
Retreat towards the frozen cap of the Earth,
Retreat towards snow-topped mountains,
Not in defeat,
As we’ll celebrate you in your absence
Knowing that your inevitable return
Is just months away.
The earth wakes up after her long slumber
Under your frozen fingertips.
She aches and stretches towards the sky,
But your enthusiasm for quiet cold respite
Hardens her reach.
Oh Frost Giants,
Oh Hades,
Oh Jack Frost,
Oh Koledo,
Oh Yuki-onna,
Oh Peboan,
And all winter folk,
It’s mid-fucking May.
For Christ’s sake,
With all due respect and love,
Get the fuck out of here.
I stood up,
My knees cracking in the cold,
Frozen hands in my now-empty pockets.
I walked back towards the warmth of my home
And towards the warmth of spring.