Winter is upon us, with the anticipation of the first big snow. Summer is gone, and in its place winter brings a time of rest and recuperation, a quiet time in preparation for the coming again of the soft scent of buds and blossoms and the sweet, lyrical sound of birdsong.

The sky turned gray by afternoon
A hush fell on the Earth
And all who waited knew quite soon
Would come the winter’s birth
So gently fell the tiny flakes
So quiet lay the wood
A moment seems the time it takes
To cover all that stood
Between the house and the first line
Of trees now white snow wrapped
With crystals that first seemed so fine
That on my windows tapped
In comfort on my kitchen chair
My coffee hot and strong
I felt compelled to sit and stare
At nature’s winter song
The summer leaves that long ago
Had left the branches bare
Were covered now with crystal snow
While deep in every lair
The tiny creatures sleeping lay
They knew ‘twould last the night
And when it stops it’s time for play
A wonder world of white
The snow grew heavy, leaving casts
Of mounded, rounded heaps
Beneath imagined pirates’ masts
Concealing treasure keeps
By dusk the driven, windrowed snow
Had blanketed the wood
And on the deck by kitchen glow
A lonely bird bath stood
It seemed but minutes had gone by
For nature’s big parade
To paint the Earth from leaden sky
As daylight turned to shade