Brumal

The birds are blithe today because
it is warm for the first time in weeks.
Since the ice storm, we have all be conserving,
a little desperate,
resigned to yet another snow.

Small animals have stripped bare
the broken branches of the crabapple
which cracked under weight of ice and are now
half submerged in white. The bark
is peeled away by their sharp teeth.

My father shoveled a path to the back deck, yesterday.
And yesterday a half-eaten rabbit
froze on the stones.
Today a white throated sparrow
stood on my finger and picked seeds
from my hand
held out the window.