Window panes caked and packed
tightly with snow,
us entombed within its center
like snails within a shell-
our warmth generated by ripples of
laughter,
and fueled by the smiles of wine and tea
and warm chocolate-
these memories of history are
the faces remembered when age has filled
our bones with dust and longing-
these are the pictures that our minds
will not forget-
each flake of snow a tale weaved
from many yesterdays, a spider web fashioned
out of crystal, and sunlight, and strands of
comfort –
these are the pictures that our souls will
never forget*