Saturday, March 5, 2011

A Winter of Endurance


















There’s an orb in the sky that I scarce can remember
That I haven’t seen since way last November.
‘Tis for me the last icon of the Fall season norm,
Before we were hit by the imperfect storm.
And, from that moment on, in that season of change,
Nothing would ever, be ever, the same.

Here came a winter with snow augmentation,
Antagonized daily by more trepidation.
A winter so fearless, too long, and so cheerless;
A winter of twice, and thrice, and suffice
Of snow and blow, and cold-moulding ice.

A winter of sadness and intimidation,
A winter of shuddering and chilled palpitation,
That held tightly captive the Canadian Nation
Buried helplessly deep in a reversed excavation.
With so many ice crystals whirling and twirling –
That one had to cancel both hockey and curling.

A state of alarm. And a state of much dread.
Stuffed up our noses, stuffed up our heads.
And to deal with our suffering with no buffering stop
We reached for the ‘Vicks’ for that chuffed-up nose-block.

Still all we could do was to fret and to fume,
When the fog of the darkness continued through noon.
We were trembling and quaking, quivering and stuttering
Still clouds overhead and more snowflakes a-fluttering.
All heightened and raised up to such an excess
Surpassing all history – the shock and distress —
Intensification up and at nightfall spurred on,
Till all thought of red roses and summer was gone.
Still winter lingers. It stays. It remains.
Hopelessness is all; we can’t stand the strain
Of a Season we wear, we share, and compare,
In Sub-Arctic temps that thicken the air.

What I tell you now, and I tell you quite true
I have ne’er been so sad, and ne’er been so blue.
And I’ve ne’er seen before such a seasonal storm
With hell frozen over and we thought it the norm.
And what I say now is with sturdy assurance
‘This winter was simply a Test of Endurance!’

But oh, sing with glad tidings of joy and of mirth
We have sunshine enough to warm up the earth.
‘Tis time, oh ‘tis time for a bewildered dance ‘round,
A BIG FAT WARM SUN is in the sky…
Shining down.

P.S. If the picture has you puzzled, this is the uncanny art that I found on the window in the back bedroom. This is an old house with old windows. Storm windows have to be manually put up each winter and screens removed. I never did put the storm up on this window. I'm rather glad I didn't cause isn't this picture truly lovely? And the tops of the ferns reflected upside down in the mirror pond, is that not totally awesome?

6 comments:

Pauline said...

I was getting a bit depressed over winter myself just reading that, but you ended on such a happy note that I'm quite cheered again.

I remember those "Jack Frost" works of art on the windows. Hope the sun keeps shining for you now, Roberta!

Roberta S said...

Thank you, Pauline. The really positive thing in it all? There will never be a spring that we will so thoroughly enjoy as the one that is now so close, and hopefully quickly on its way.

Glad you enjoyed the art work - I have another frost 'canvas' that I'm holding out on for the time being as I wanted to write a poem to go with it (this time a happier one).

Joy Des Jardins said...

Beautiful...I really enjoyed this piece Roberta; and I surely related to every frosty, icy, chill-filled word. Ah yes, this spring...when it does come...will be heaven. ~Joy

Roberta S said...

Hi joy, Pleased that you enjoyed the poem. At the same time you have my sympathy when you say you can relate to what a difficult winter it has been.

And oh yes, oh yes, it is so true. Spring has never been more anxiously looked forward to as this time round. This year our passion for spring has been stimulated to an all-time high that is deep, heartfelt, and true.

joared said...

Well! This photo and your poem has mesmerized me. So many word pictures. Thanks for explaining how the the window art came into existence.

Roberta S said...

Hi joared. I am flattered if you were mesmerized by the poem. I'm not the least surprised if you were mesmerized by the frosty window because I certainly was and felt anyone would be. Thanks for visiting.