“Gymnopédies No. 1”

That was the week it didn’t stop snowing. That was the week five-fingered trees fell on houses & power lines broke like somebody waiting for payday in a snowstorm. That snow week, my daughter & I trudged over the broken branches fidgeting through snow like hungry fingers through an empty pocket. Over the termite-hollowed stump as squat as a flat tire. Over the hollow the fox dives into when we open the back door at night. That was the week of snow & it glittered like every Christmas card we could remember while my daughter poked around for the best place to stand a snowman. One with a pinecone nose. One with thumb-pressed eyes to see the whole picture once things warm up.