Winter Manse

As crystal flurries settle into woodland cathedral,

A refuge for deer and songbird of crimson wing,

Exquisite silence drapes ridge and holler primeval

While winter’s frosty breath in grove reigns king.

Grassy knoll and autumn tillage long for wintertide.

They commit to endurance under coverlet of snow

And frost on flaxen straw in dreamland countryside,

Where folks bide time till buds grace pussy willow. 

Long winter nights have need of warm hearth fires,

Where dance of flames gives heart and soul wing,

Makes way for tales of peril, hope, playful desires

And encourages musing about life in wait for spring.

So cast aside reason, hear lively wind in solitary pine,

Know play of sunset hues on icebound lake expanse,

Chase moonrise above glen and wooded ridge line

And find childlike comfort in Mother Nature’s manse. 

Spellbound I press against frosted window panes,

My heart captivated by abundance of ethereal down,

As icicle splendor, hoarfrost and snowy country lanes

Grow into reverie ‘bout winter days in our small town.

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Star Dust
(Abandoned farm on Farrington Road east of Pittsboro NC)