Days of Suet

Days of Suet


Birches wrapped in peeling scarves
show their winter bones as they shiver.
Skeletal elms and maples scratch
the snow-laden dingy sky
calling for white blankets.

The ancestor's bones across the field
wear matching winter caps. The cardinals
streak through the falling snow,
wings beating like hearts,
blood pressured for life-sustaining suet.

Red squirrel climbs the shepherd's crook,
reaching between the slinky strands--nothing
fazes him. The dog runs after him--a battle
she'll never win. Air crackles, and the cold sweep
chills as I exit my warm cocoon for firewood.

The bears are smart, dreaming winter away.
I, too, would hibernate, sleeping until Spring
Not an option as I'd miss days like this one
and they fly by so quickly. Each day like suet
sustaining us for whatever comes next.