annacrewscamphouse

Summerville Storm

 

White-laden palms

Fronds almost breaking

With the weight of the fresh fallen snow

 

There is a silent madness of arctic air

Flakes swirling, dancing, diving fast

From a sky ominous and mysterious

 

Neighbors captured for hours

Burrowed within Southern homes

No fireplaces, no plows, no snowmobiles

 

Nothing to prepare them for Grayson’s visit

 

Time passes. Slowly children come out to play.

Sleds pulled behind the biggest trucks

Carry riders squealing with glee

 

Couples sashay down the center

Of the snow-covered lane

Hand in hand in an Epiphany winter wonderland

 

Whizzing balls thrown from house to house

Packed carefully by half-frozen hands

Find their marks as their prey seek escape

 

Neighbors become both friend and foe in a moment

 

Hunched around tea and cocoa

The leftover Christmas treats slowly disappear

Nothing else to do but eat and play

 

Telling stories and bonding with family and friends

Remembering days gone by

A simpler time where face time was not on your phone

 

Inch by inch, the road disappears before them

Forecasters warn there is more to come

Some people say power is at risk

 

We pray that no one freezes tonight

 

A pause becomes a new memory

The silent outside is balanced by the laughter inside

Tickles and giggles the music of the day

 

Finding new ways to spend our time

Unplugged, uncaring of the list of to-dos we brought

Mother nature created a new memory unplanned

 

Books to read and laughs to share

The day that moves at the pace of life

Such a stranger to our daily slavery to time

 

Freedom to be and share and give

Seems like such an old-fashioned thing

In this moment, reconnecting is real

 

Too bad the snow will melt tomorrow