OH, WINTER
Oh, Winter, how cold your winds do blow,
Oh, Winter, how white your snow which covers the land and bare branches of trees once green with the leaves of a long ago summer.
Oh, Winter, your wrath has transformed the lakes from the enchantment of shimmering waves into prairies of icy stillness.
Oh Winter, you have robbed the sun of its warmth and turned the Moon into a distant far away light that shines weakly on a dark and silent landscape.
Oh Winter, we flee your chill into our homes where we spend long nights finding warmth and comfort from burning logs which cast light and shadows all around us.
Oh Winter, there is some good you bring. You slow us down. Giving us time to think about the loves and blessings of our lives which are sometimes forgotten in the busyness of the summer. Time to remember where these favors come from, The God above who never forgets us no matter what the season…
Oh, Winter, We thank you for that.
Oh, Winter. You are so powerful now. We can only hope you are also humble and know that your reign is not forever… that you will wane and weaken when the first breath of the new Spring arrives.
Then, your snow will disappear, replaced by colorful flowers. Birds will return to the skies where the cold is gone… and their song will fill our hearts and souls with joy and hope.
Oh, Winter.
Goodbye.
(Written by Virgil Dominic)