February 2022
Bio Note: I am a retired physician living in Neenah, WI. I am the author of two poetry chapbooks, Northern Portrait (Kelsay Books, 2020), and A Glint of Light (Finishing Line Press, 2020). My recent poetry has appeared in The McGuffin and Sky Island Journal. When not writing or reading, I play acoustic folk guitar and explore the Northwoods with my wife and two Labrador retrievers.
Hoarfrost and Snow
All-day the fog curdles and drifts.
Giant pines recede and disappear
in the gray half-light. Hour by hour
it grows colder. Before the unseen
sunset, ten below zero. Clouds like
clotted cream between the trees.
After dark a howling wind breaks
branches. Tatters of clouds rush
across the sky. Through them tumbles
a moon like a chip of ice.
Morning now, and stillness. Heavy flakes
sift gently down. Pine boughs sag with snow.
Treetops silver, ice-shackled with hoarfrost.
The ground smooth and white, a quilt for
winter to rest on. The air woodsmoke
and wonder. All is quiet except
for a faint whispering, the sound
of my own cold, grateful breath.
Winter Night
In the evening, after
a snowfall, look out
onto a field or forest;
calm, untouched, and white.
Listen to the stillness.
This is the best time
to find solace. Look
at the stars, the waning
moon. Let snow silence
fill your head. Winter
is the quiet time,
the slowed-down time,
the time for drifting
to that hidden place within.
©2022 Fredric Hildebrand
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