poem – The Storms This Winter

The Storms This Winter

 

The storms this winter make me afraid

Like I have never feared before.

It seems to be too much for me.

I have grown suddenly old.

Trudging across the tundra

that was my summer grass and my warm sunshine,

destroyed and determined to freeze me to death.

Control of car and control of feet and balance.

These are the questions that poke at me.

My fingers aching inside my gloves from the cold.

My nose hurting after a minute outside.

Wondering seriously if my circulation decline

Is going to net me actual frostbite, something

I thought was just for a Jack London short story.

I only see cars out, frosted exhaust plumes rising,

no people walking.

And one mad woman jogger at 6:25am on a morning

With -30 degrees Celsius to convince her lungs that fire

Was a relative state of sensation,

that black clothing with no reflector tape

Was the perfect chance to end it all

and get run over by an old man

Blinking through his mostly defrosted

attempt at a windshield.

Very late in life to become a killer, so he manages to slide past without

Felony consequence.

Then I see the night nurses walking fast to their cars.

At the hospital parking lot

When I arrive for dialysis

Having outpaced the snow ploughs

a couple of mornings per week.

Winter rolls slowly forward

like the trunk of a snowman

Accumulating weight and momentum,

thickening like slush turning

To frozen worry. The smallest attempts

become a full day’s load of effort.

some icing in these parts

100 miles north of Toronto just south of Georgian Bay, the east end of Lake Huron, in central Ontario, Tay Township and just near by to it,  not far from where I live.  A bit of freezing rain on the trees, we may just miss the larger freezing rain storm blasting through Southern Ontario over the next 24 hours.

Sony Nex F3 with 18-55mm lens

early winter photos – Tay Township

taken by me today using a Sony NEX F3 with 18-55 lens

100 miles north of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, just south of Georgian Bay, the Sturgeon River

It is interesting to keep returning to the same spots through the four seasons.  Today I noticed that with all the foliage down, I could now see from a slightly different position a view of the Sturgeon River, little more than creek sized, that during the full grown season was invisible.  This section of the river was the water supply for a 17th century Huron village. A haunting spot.

a river runs through Fergus

a river runs through Fergus, a photo by gnawledge wurker on Flickr.

perfect place to drive to for a photographic treat, a beautiful river walk in the centre of Fergus, an old mill town in southern Ontario.

September 2003 – Nikon Coolpix 5700

new beach park in Victoria Harbour, Ontario

new beach park in Victoria Harbour, Ontario, a photo by gnawledge wurker on Flickr.

Tay Township put in place this small beach park in downtown Victoria Harbour, next to what was once the covered town dock but which has more recently been assumed by the Federal Govt.

Nice sandy beach, fairly shallow for the kids, lots of sod put in, a gazebo and a few tall shade trees, although a good umbrella might be a wise thing to bring along, remember your sun safety.

Sony H50 shot of the new Gazebo