The North Wind

The North Wind comes,
Ripping and howling,
Nipping and yowling,
Gnashing its broken teeth.
It beats the trees,
Bites passers-by,
Tormenting all in its path;
The sun itself flees
The cloud-driven sky,
Escaping the frigid wrath.
Summer is gone and winter is nigh;
Cold times, they are ahead: —
I wrap my cloak tighter with a sigh
And take me to my bed.


(AJ 12-3-08)