Photo: literophanes.com
~
Words like flurries dust the December ground,
Unsettled only by the blades of ice skaters in the park.
A lone plastic holly berry sits at the bottom of subway stairs
Before the F train that carries riders in Santa suits.
~
Artificial firs aglow in high rise windows.
Colored bulbs adorn fire escapes.
Ornamented garland drapes the railings of brownstones.
A hanging star flashes from a sublevel apartment window.
~
Above the graffiti patchwork covering the heights,
The aged sky is hushed with sweet bakery smells.
No echoes of horns, or sirens, or protesting voices
Fall with the flurries.
~
Inside the dog is asleep on an uneven floor,
Undisturbed by the banging of pipes
Or midnight words that fall from my fingers on keys
As I write sipping apple brandy and bitters.
~
literophanes.com 