when i was a kid my favorite season was winter the heavy snows in illinois would smother the sound laying heavy over everything

but my joy was waking before the sun rose in her pallid state to watch the light reflect off the millions of diamond coated tree branches

the air was too cold for moisture so there were gems that hung suspended around me as the hoarfrost encased everything in crystal

the clouds of breath froze leaving small clouds above the small ditch carved with little legs through the many feet once left undisturbed

if i close my eyes i can see the still world in startling clarity feel the cold against my eyes the urge to lick my dry lips but knowing that leads to ruin

she lives in my head in the same vividness only reserved for singular perfections while her smile seems to have ingrained itself over all

i feel as if i stumble through the accumulated dander of a thousand tears to see the sun rise refracting her smile into beams of ecstatic magic

my hoarfrost queen sitting atop the throne of former loves to reign over the frozen world that lies in the library carefully built in my mind