"No Trespassing" sign
Crumbling on the tree trunk;
Loud bird flock above.











Swift water glistens
Over the green mossy rock:
Irresistible.

They say it will snow;
Now the sky is blue, sun shines.
Which is fantasy?












Gray-beige shelf fungus
Is now part of the tree--
Natural marriage.

Caught in the tree bark
Dead leaf sticks like a message
From the wind or God.

Mist above the trees
Softens the distant mountain.
Frost makes bushes shine.

Sound of a chain saw;
Pick-up stinks noisily past--
Then shadows and sun.

Limbs twisted and ripped
Body lies just off the road,
Featureless in death.

Crow caws, rooster crows;
Small birds twitter in the trees.
Rooster crows again.

In the pond's mirror
Barn windows peer vacantly.
No animals move.

Man and two spaniels;
He smiles, chats and is friendly.
The dogs are wary.












Porch light in the sun
Now lights up only itself.
A giant crow caws.

Sun tracks on the snow
Light up the pine forest floor
But do not melt it.

The snow has melted
Revealing the forest trail
Of soft pine needles.

Dead tree standing tall
Soaks sunshine the others
But no leaves catch it.

Cloud wisps in the sky
Float slowly across the blue.
Birds twitter and sing.

Dark Empty Spaces

Munching noiselessly
Goat watches me watching him;
Both of us contented.

A little colder--
Snow ponds glisten into ice.
Still, the raucous streams.









A large empty cage
Abandoned on the driveway
Imprisons the air.

There is no wind now;
Even the dead leaves hang still--
All sounds seem distant.

Catching some sunshine,
Ice melts off the layered rock--
The drips glisten.









In trees, under trees,
Beneath rocks and under ground:
Dark empty spaces.









Two doggy brothers
Sit together on the hill
Always communing.

Dark squirrel on white snow
Noiselessly scurries across
Only to vanish.

Reflections

In the fields brown rules
Pushing back the melting snow.
Wind howls nervously.

Snow ponds are forming;
Clouds reflect in the water
Then they disappear.











Water's everywhere:
In the loud torrential stream
And patient snow banks.








Wind chases the clouds--
Now the road is bright and warm,
Now it's gray and cold.

Wind drowns out the streams--
A roaring beast in the woods;
Leaves scatter in fright.

The world is gray now;
Misty drops caress my face;
Hollow wind deafens.

Dead leaves are racing,
Blowing from woods across road--
Frantically nowhere.

Rivaling the snow
White birch tree stands in the sun.
(But it will not melt).

Path is slippery;
All the ice has disappeared
Leaving water skin.









Tracks criss cross the field;
Soon they will melt in the sun--
January thaw.

Sparkling in the sun,
Stream carries the melting snow--
Persistent water.

Snow bank and the fence
Meet at the side of the road.
(And the fence buckles).

From imprisoned woods
Shots echo through the chain link fence.
Do they shoot poachers?

With the melting snow
Forest path is revealed first
Worn by ghostly feet.











Cold at the road's bend
Winter's trapped in the valley.
I treck up to warmth.

A bucket of warmth
Billows out upon the road
Caressing my cheeks.

Hiding in the tree
A dark heart peers from the bark:
Early Valentine.

Snowflakes are falling;
They flicker across the road.
Suddenly are gone.








In the snowy field
Sun catchers wait patiently;
But there is no sun.

Now the stream is black
Imprinting in the white snow.
A car spins its wheels.

Snow rides on the swing,
But the wind does not move it.
Play time is over.









Mailbox ornament
Waiting through spring, summer, fall--
In time for Christmas.

There is no sun now;
A gray cloud blankets the sky.
It will soon give birth.

Persistent dead leaves
Tremble in December's wind.
Will they wait 'til spring?

Roadside snow is gray,
Covered with dirt and gas fumes.
Beyond: the white fields.

Wind is icy cold;
Leaf skitters across the snow;
Now the world is white.

The field is all white;
Some shadows play on its face;
North wind blows icy.

Trampoline is full;
Thick layer of snow sits on it,
And it's not bouncing.

Shadows on the snow
Lie unmoving, dark and stark,
While wind howls above.












Still, dead tree reaches;
Its branches frosted with snow:
A winter ballet.

Grizzled old black dog
Jumps up and down barking loud;
Keeping himself warm.











Stern one-eyed tree face
Stares blind at the snowy woods.
What is he thinking?

Beneath ice and snow
The dark stream still moves loudly--
Motion and stillness.

AT THE MOMENT OF SNOW

Crows in the grayness
Caw beyond the darkened sky,
Their cries all around.

High on a tree top
Crow alights--a silhouette;
Then there are others.










Silhouettes abound:
Tree branches and birds flying,
Drawn sharp by the sky.

Gray world is waiting;
Even the wind is silent--
Soon there will be snow.

The familiar bend
Is mysterious today,
As if in a dream.

Sudden quick motion--
A dot of white floats past me:
The first snow flakes fall.

They are all around:
Teeming, silent, specks of white
Falling to the earth.

They fall silently
These myriad flickers of snow--
They need no fanfare.

Road is white now--
Soft snow blanket descending;
Bewildered Schnauzer.

Winter warmth today;
Potted plant lies in the road;
Gray misty rain falls.









Yellow car beacons
Breaking the gray morning gloom
Slow as in parade.

Is it rain or sleet?
Light cold tapping all around;
Yet stream is louder.

Tangled in brambles
Dead leaves have not reached the ground;
Fall from tree to tree.

Most snow is melted
Leaving beer cans, bags and slush:
"After" to "Before."

In a mud puddle
A sepia tree looks down
From sepia sky.

Across the gray sky
A white jet stream moves slowly,
Then it's covered up.

Miniature forest;
Moss flourishes on the rock,
A parallel world.









A bright splash of red
Add a dash of winter green:
Seasonal salad.

Sharp crunching of ice;
Flag frozen on the mail box;
Frosted pine tree tips.








Bundled up tightly
Kids sit around the table--
Eat ice for breakfast.











On the tip of leaves
Frozen motionless tear drops
Hanging suspended.

Glistening, twisting
Ice snakes up the long driveway--
No place now for cars.

Dancing down wildly
Puppy skids on the slick ice
Still wagging its tail.








Thin branches outstretched;
Weighed down by layers of ice--
Trees seem to reach out.

Howling in the woods,
Invisible and plaintive
Animal sadness.