December 31, 2019

branches without leaves
against a cloud-shrouded sky —
nothing starts today


December 30, 2019

year’s end snow drifts —
imagining the sweet hollow
where your neck begins


December 29, 2019

winter song circle —
by the last verse
we all know the tune


December 28, 2019

in the owl’s shadow
a rabbit runs for cover —
late December


December 27, 2019

past the edge of town
out where the stars are brighter —
come and find me


December 26, 2019

splashes of wine
on the new cookbook —
my sister’s kitchen


December 25, 2019

low-angle sunlight
glancing off the gelid lake —
the wheeling stars wait


December 24, 2019

Christmas Eve —
untangling the tree lights
just in time


December 23, 2019

forgetting again
who this present is for —
Christmas Eve eve


December 22, 2019

after the Solstice —
our far-from-home Christmas tree
lets down its boughs


December 21, 2019

trying not to break
the frozen grass underfoot —
thoughts of my father


December 20, 2019

old friends
their arms around each other —
winter holiday


December 19, 2019

teaching my heart
(now that the flowers are gone)
to open in the cold


December 18, 2019

ice at the lake’s edge —
I wonder if the geese
are already gone



December 17, 2019

darker every day —
we stand still until
our eyes adjust


December 16, 2019

clouds over clouds —
so many snow day dreams
tucked under the eaves


clouds over clouds —
so many snow day dreams
tucked under the eaves


December 15, 2019

Christmas cards —
more of them now with
one signature


December 14, 2019

new diagnosis —
the ground goes soft
in an all-day rain


December 13, 2019

the never-gone stars
of a cloud-crowded sky —
missing grandparents


December 12, 2019

under the ice
the brook still tumbling down —
words just out of reach


December 11, 2019

cold winter night —
we can’t seem to stop talking 
about the moon



December 10, 2019

the stars are the same
it must be we who have changed —
new constellations


December 09, 2019

all day rain —
the step down to the dock
so much shorter now


December 08, 2019

end of day sigh —
the dog uses my leg
for a pillow


December 07, 2019

Christmas wreath —
a small insistent forest
between the doors


December 06, 2019

my father’s name —
flickering back to life
whenever I sign mine


December 05, 2019

gentle insistence —
mourning doves calling again
for what they want


December 04, 2019

last night’s dreams —
the feeling of snowflakes
melting on my face


December 03, 2019

my heart
beating fast for you —
birds bursting skyward


December 02, 2019

glowing eyes and shadows —
we and the fox go home
to tell our families


December 01, 2019

rain turning to sleet —
every surface becoming
the drum it dreamed of



rain turning to sleet —
every surface becoming
the drum it dreamed of