OFFICIALLY WINTER...

“In seed time learn, in harvest teach, in winter enjoy.” - William Blake

The first day of winter Downunder started frostily this morning with a brisk 3˚C, as I was reaching the train station to catch the 6:31 a.m. train into the City. As I was climbing the stairs of the overpass to cross the tracks, I could see the crystals of ice on the steps, shining like strewn diamond dust under the spotlights. The sky was clear of clouds and the stars shone brightly, with the bright sparks of Jupiter and Venus coruscating in the eastern sky. As the sun came up the day turned out to be cool, but beautiful and sunny. Crisp air and bright sunshine lasted the whole day long, warming the air to about 17˚C and feeling very pleasant as one walked out and about.

Here is a poem I wrote a few years ago inspired by the season, but the difference is that I have now evicted the winter from within me and enjoy a warm summer inside of me while the cold winds may howl outside:

Winter Walks

Winter sun for silver sunshine
And a cold, hard, stony-blue sky.
Denuded trees that clutch at sunbeams
With a myriad twigs weaving like spinnerets
Intricate lace of light and shade
On soft, sweet-smelling carpet
Of fallen leaves.

Winter snow for roaring blazes
And steamed up window panes.
Rain that falls in glum, melancholy gardens,
The drizzle like a fine gauze,
Imprisoning butterfly-leaves of bright evergreens.
Silence and advancing dusk
Suffocate a soul’s scream.

Winter winds for soft rich furs
And the smug caress of many layered warmth.
Icy breaths that chill the heart
Cutting like razors made of sharp icicles.
Deep iceberg green and rainy blue mingle
Keeping me company with the whistling of the wind
In winter’s frozen solitude.