We hoped for the melt but it was too sudden.
The forest yielding its cover of snow
took us by surprise and we were unwilling
voyeurs of exposed, fallen limbs
and defenseless patches of wet earth.

Like picking up a magazine and finding that someone
had filled out the quiz, “How **** are you?”
And you know that person
and you can never tell them that you also know
their score.
So we hoped again, this time for spring
to hurry, to rush in with leaves
and cover it all back up again,
to ease our discomfort.  

Nightfall offered a softer view.
One lamp in the front room spilled
generous pools of light outside
which for some hours dressed
the bare earth and trees
and let the forest
appear hushed and secure
the way it was before.

But the deer, beyond the light
pick their way on muddy ground.
They search for footing
with cautious, slender legs
and each step is courage
so of course, they will find spring
even in the dark,
step by step.