Winter Creatures
All day long, the snow fell,
Softly, quietly; you couldn’t tell,
When your eyes were closed.
All the next day, we shoveled;
The mail was undelivered.
Could we hope for it the next day?
Or the next?
Yes, after dark the mail truck came,
One day, or two; some hours late,
Bringing news, and things to read;
The carrier freezing in his truck.
(But I’m hoping not –.
Do they wear electric suits,
Like astronomers, watching distant stars?}
I trudged out to get the mail,
And sorting it, found it not all ours.
Four pieces each, for neighbors next –
Should I venture out to deliver the rest?
Perhaps foolishly — yes, I went.
And on the way, looked to my left.
Two deer stood silently, watching me.
In the silence, dark, and cold,
We watched each other, warily.
Some days we see the animal tracks,
And even trails, worn in the snow.
Squirrels, birds, and chipmunks, too —
Deer and rabbits have passed through.
And today, with sun on snow,
A flash of red in bush does show.
A cardinal has come to eat
Some seeds I set out for a treat.
A rabbit came to our porch, too.
He tried some parsley, grass –
But few, the blades that he did pick to chew.
So blessed we are, with all these creatures,
Nature is God’s constant teacher.
clarakatalin 