Autumn, Romona Youngquist, 22 X 30, Oil on Canvas
A Stream in February
The snow beneath the alders tightens
at the bank to glazed plates
of pewter, cyan and white
where ice has grown
to hide the black warp
of winter water, and coat the beam
of shale ledge over which
the freshet’s selvedge edge unfolds.
One small tear remains
amidstream the stillness—
and through this gap,
beads of air simmer
on the verge, and are pulled away
or escape into the frozen air
in a mist that rises skyward,
entwined with the sound
of the stream’s constant weaving.
________________
Kevin Casey