Not Quite Winter Poem by Theresa Ann Moore

In the middle of the week at noon
I picked my grandson up after school
Returning home, the sun shone brightly
Leafless trees shivered as gusts blew cool

After milk and peanut butter toast with sugar
The four-year-old took off his shoes and socks
He charge upstairs to play familiar video games
He meticulously built a palace with wooden blocks

The warmth of the sun streamed through the pane
He asked to go outside to play as he took the lead
Let’s get ready, we can have a lot of fun playing
His eager enthusiasm was contagious, so I agreed

I forgot that it was only twenty-nine degrees outside
All the yard toys had been stored away from the chill
The silhouette of a barren swing set was lacking joy
The flying seats were stored next to the covered grill

Stretching tall to metal hooks, linked chains were attached
Small mittened hands tugged and started the locomotion
Stepping back with legs angling from the frozen ground
A sensation of breaking free set loud laughter into motion

A bright red zippered down jacket hugged tight in flight
Excitement cooled as the top of the fence was surpassed
A snug knit cap protected his delicate ears from frostbite
Let’s play a fun game of tag, he said… come on … run fast

We gasped to catch our breath in a cloud of freezing vapor
Do you think that maybe it is time to go inside and thaw out?
Approaching the front door, a patch of solid snow was spotted
A final request before going inside was made with a shout

Can I make a snow angel in this heap of white glistening snow?
Sorry, it is a solid mound of frozen ice that I can not recommend
With a kick and a scuff he loosened jagged chunks and bits
Nice try, but you’ll have to wait for soft snowflakes to descend.