winter dreams

the snow is falling,
the first herald of winter cold
i can see the tiny crystals
as they drift to the ground

some rest twinklingly on the pavement
before they melt away to nothing
they cover the road before
the ruthless plow casts them aside

the snowflakes blow and drift
in capricious winds
forming huge white drifts where the
perfect crystals are lost to anonymity

the winter moon alone
smiles upon the falling snow
the rest of the world sleeps
and does not see it till morning

and then the groans
the irritation of shovels and blowers
and trucks to clear away the snow
and cast it aside

only the children shout with glee
and bound outdoors to play
among the snowflakes
their first delicious taste of winter

snowmen and snowfamilies take shape
in the clear cold morning
fortresses and castles rise above the plowed drifts
as the snow becomes a world

how sad to think that they
too will one day wake up
and groan at the shovel
because so much snow has fallen

how very sad to think
that the only ones who care about the snow
are the children in their world of dreams
the stuff of make-believe