By Michael Mogel

Tire tracks fade in winters freeze
A drunken winter – a spring time tease
Brown pine needles slip from boughs
Mittens drop to the wooden floor
Wandering at night alone
Watched from a winter window
Like children leaving home
The fall drained leaves are brown
They glide and twist to find the ground
The black tar roads are iced with snow
Cold conception – coffee hot
What we think is what we’re not
An inner meaning also sought
A reason for some strange sensation
Is it real or medication
Icy fingers hold the coffee
Warming from the cup
Chasing after wisping steam
Giving free advice
Traveled far since leaving
Thinking once or twice
A thick wool coat and wings of freedom
What are these aches and pains
Could be from crashes years ago
Now everything’s insane
Too many words come from nowhere
Wasting precious time
A pretty face – a pretty smile
A hand that’s happy tipping
If only it was hot out
Time for skinny dipping
What would she say to that suggestion
Let’s go swimming anyway
Let’s cool off in the water
All of that a dream right now
When all I see is ice
Could be if we start to talk
She might not be so nice
So really I’ve come nowhere
Still in my own back yard
And even wings of freedom
Can’t help me to escape
The snow still has to melt
And lose the woolen cape
How do I fill the empty space
Resigning from the human race
Even if I’m really wrong
I could sing my latest song
She could hug me with a kiss
Her warmth and smile is what I’d miss
But now I see she hobbles on
The snow will surely melt
And when the sun returns
Her smile will still be felt
She could be happy lakeside
Some wine that we could sip
Evening summer I’ll suggest
Time we skinny dip