Bad News
Oct 13 2022
It dipped below freezing last night.
This is how it begins;
in minor increments
that feel like 2 steps forward
1 step back.
I would have slept through it
if the dog hadn't whined to go out.
Wouldn't have known
that winter had dipped in its toe,
made the first tentative move
to shoulder autumn aside
and assert its rule.
The first snow
will likely disappear as well,
a light flurry
that leaves a lacy whiteness on the grass,
then vanishes
as soon as dawn breaks.
Transient
. . . until it's not.
And the long winter night.
At first, a little earlier each day
then suddenly a lot.
Until it feels like it's always dark;
a brief half light
in the tightening vice
of a late sunrise
impatient sunset.
Even spring, in dribs and drabs
until one day it's a torrent.
And summer
in a sudden swarm of bugs
that pin you down indoors.
The natural order of things?
Good news
a smattering;
bad news all at once.
Late last night/early this morning, the deck had the appearance of a heavy dew. But it was really the thinnest skim of ice, and slippery as hell. (Wasn't entirely the dogs. We all went outside to pee! ) I was surprised by this. As if summer had slipped almost directly into winter, and fall was over before it even started.
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