by Brooke
Moving from Southern CA to New England is like moving from a virtually weatherless bubble to the real world. So I think about weather constantly. And maybe everyone else here does too, but I’m not used to thinking about weather constantly. So it feels like an obsession to me. And when I obsess about things, I tend to write poems about them.
Winter Weather Poem
It is winter
I wear hat, coat, boots everywhere
when it snows I am amazed
when it rains I am amazed
if anything falls from the sky
I am amazed
as I explain to my son why it happens
and the whole time I think is this really what happens and why?
I keep thinking this as I explain the cold of winter
the sun and its distance
the tilt of the planet
And I am amazed
as we wheel across space
on a giant sphere orbiting a gianter sphere
and my brain gets lost in the hugeness
and so I try to think small
coat, hat, boots
as we walk the block to school
Love.
exactly what ebrown said.
I am amazed that spring comes. Every year. Biggest miracle I have experienced. Every year.
Beautiful! Though I wouldn’t expect anything less.
Brooke,
I love how you go from such a small world of coats and hats to the hugeness of space and back to the coat and hats. Fantastic visuals.
Deborah, me too. A miracle that never gets old!
Most people haven’t experienced winter unless they’ve lived in parts of Canada, where the temperatures can dip down to -50c with the wind chill factored in. I remember one year in Calgary, when the temperature was -45c and the wind was at 45 mph – wind chill was at -90, skin would freeze in 2 seconds! It makes one really appreciate spring and summer even though it’s for a total of about 4 months.
Yes, I am thinking about the miracle of spring too. But when I am in the middle of a season, it’s hard to imagine that there will ever be anything else. I am baffled by the fact that six months ago we were suffocating in the heat and humidity of this place. And to think that will ever happen again seems impossible.
Eleanor, I cannot even imagine that kind of winter. I realize that my experience right now (as many locals have informed me) is a mild winter so far. But it still blows me away.
Like your poetry very much. Moved from New England to Arizona several years ago. When they cry “Winter!” here , I say “Winter? Where?”!
Like Two of Three, I’m in AZ, so it’s hard to imagine that winter means anything more than a long sleeved t-shirt.
So, I am a little jealous. I would love to have a little snow (not too much, though).
Great poem. I am amazed that you are so good at writing poetry! It’s so hard for me to do.
Well done.
ahhh
Those last lines are brilliant. Love the image of the universe, then back to the tiny details. It’s very you Brooke, those tiny detailed things.
I miss the seasons in Michigan. Every fall here in AZ I crave crispy leaves, rusty colors, warm cinnamon donuts, apple cider at a cider mill. And football. Go Blue!