-- Winter Nights --

by John Herlihy

This poem has been written with winter nights in mind,

Harsh weather outside, by the fire inside, feeling kind.

The birds have flown south, a crisp sparkle in the air,

Beside a warm fireplace, I sit content in an armchair.

The wood neatly stacked ready to burn its steady glow,

Outside under the stars, fields white with pure snow.

The sweet breath of summer blows harsh in December,

Casting winter among the seasons as an alien member.

Within the cocoon of the heart on this cold lonely night,

The solitude of the moment takes on a soothing light.

No place for sadness, an emotion reluctant to share,

As winter and all its majesty has laid the earth bare.

There is a simplicity to winter and its lethal embrace,

Frosted white crystals bedeck the trees in white lace.

There it is, in all its stark reality, outside my window,

While inside in the warmth of the hearth, heart-glow.

The aging grandfather clock counting toward midnight,

The night revealing itself as special in the soft moonlight.

So time passes with the seasons, seconds to the hour,

As harsh winter and its lethal embrace loses its power.

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Copyright © John Herlihy

Sunday 28 January 2024