Winter comes quietly

Drowned in the comfort of my oversized sweater, I gaze at the snow, falling in gentle flakes. There’s little more than a soft breeze, I can tell because the leaves on the trees only sway slightly, And a few fall now and then.

I dream of hot chocolate, maybe some pancakes too. In the company of familiar faces, good food gets better, Time somehow flows sweeter, As if the speed didn’t really matter, Because slow or fast, it was worthwhile To hold on to each passing moment.

Now that I’m older, and the days longer, Winter more of a welcome reality than the youth of my summers, The snow reminds me to not forsake my blanket, I’m warm, yet there is a dampness in the air, and I should be under the covers. But I couldn’t resist this dainty sight – snowflakes, falling leaves, Some semblance of peace.

He didn’t taste this season with me, Though he promised to be there, When the lines on our foreheads were as long and deep As the journeys we’ve recorded, In our journals, filled with captures of a life fully lived. Together, it was richer, and our joy knew no bounds when our fingers knew just how to fit in with each other’s. Safe for a lifetime, That’s how you made me feel.

I knew you would never break my heart, Though you did break my smile on some days, You found a way to walk back into my love, And never left, even when it grew cold. You stirred up the beginnings of our affection, With a song, a melody heard far back in time, And sometimes with deep conversation, Persistent in reaching the depths of my soul, And not letting go until you had reclaimed the love that had always been yours. The fire always returned, your eyes always found mine, In a busy crowd, or through our busy minds, You knew just how to invade the mundane, Pause the chaos for a moment of passion.

I can’t forget the way we walked Over the autumn leaves, drying grass, Over the sorrows, cares and defeats. We didn’t stop long enough for the burdens to weigh us down, We walked and others followed, Catching the gleam in our eyes, The reflection of His light, As Love faced us every day, lit up our existence with beauty, Made us pursue wisdom, choose kindness, and to give it all away.

Summer couldn’t be surpassed, or so I thought when I met you. But you showed me I was wrong, And I forgot the cold of winter, Until the one arrived, When you held my hand in a painful grip, Our hearts breaking because we didn’t know how to say goodbye, Or if we ever could. And I had to learn that I couldn’t let you go, Without also losing me, And so I never did.

~ Prakruthi