Bears and the grief of Winter

J. Rajcich 2011

Winter is the period of grief

after watching the world

slowly fade around you

into a beautiful death.

The flourish of autumn

is the moment of clarity

just before the world dies.

The bears seem wise

to hibernate winter away.

Never being there

for the final breath,

the last words,

or the death rattle.

Bears never see

the grey blanket

drawn over the vibrant

face of Mother Earth

as her soul leaches

from her body into

the groundwater below.

I do not envy the bears though.

They do not feel the pain

or Struggle with the loss.

They only sleep

all winter long

awakening in spring

only to experience

the mundane repetition

of the same old shit.

After a winter of strife

we get the joy of rebirth

coming full circle

from the dark of Morgoth

to the violins of Vivaldi

as that first splash of color

delivers a touch of splendor

back into this harsh world.

November Crush

The November crush

Grips the inner ghoul

And blackens the heartbeat

which slows to a sluggish pace.

Each beat slow to absorb

Every last ounce of summer blood

Hemorrhaging off the oaks

Spilling to the ground

For the dark season’s ferment.

Broken ghost emotions

Haunting the minds

Of those hunkered down

Away from the bone chill

Clinging to the last time

That they remember feeling

Fuzzy on the inside.

Frozen breezes strike

Those with smiling teeth

Like a dentist’s drill

Killing the friendly gestures

Into a tight lipped grimace.

A holy sweater covered face

Moist with the breath of

A turtle-neck Jesus is

Converting the Masses

To the snug scripture,

While the chicken soup Beelzebub

Tempts the weary spirits away

From the light and into the den

Of baked breads and unforgiveable sin.

Yet this eternal struggle

Between the heavens and hells

Can put itself on hold

Until winter slips away

And returns our imprisoned souls

From solitary confinement

Where they have been stored

Since the November crush began

And there will once again

Be a few souls worth fighting over.