above the din
of a yuletide storm

listen carefully
you can hear
a woman
sobbing

she’s
trapped
in an ice cave
a prison
of her own making

in agonizing
isolation
unloved
unknown
wishing
for the warmth
the touch
of another

afraid to love
of being hurt
closing off
her heart
to others

pristine and lovely
is the snowfall
from the queen’s
weeping