On the red cheeks
a thousand little pinpricks.
Clouds of breath
white and warm.
Crunching footsteps
on the lonely path.
Glistening light breaks through
the dense branches.

Suddenly
a loud crash.
Birds rise screeching into the air.
Grinding sounds,
cracking branches,
a tremendous crash,
the earth shakes,
snow falls for a short while.

Then
the icy silence
returns.