a cold day

A Cold Day

The new day was cold frost on windows, pavements
were ice rinks, an old lady dressed in black fell flat,
couldn’t get up, she looked as a back fly that had lost
its wings. Ashen sky the sun just had strength enough
to give light and the old woman had a nosebleed that
she dried off with the whitest hankie I had ever seen
and when she thanked me for helping her up, I went
all shy and knew I had met nobility.

Good day for school though, the classroom was warm,
icy fingers ached when warming up again. Men from
the council came, a truck full of salt strewn on ice
making it into brine which wasn’t much fun for us
children. From the classroom big window I could see
the blue mountain it had snow on top and I wondered
if there were palms and an atoll, on the cobalt wonders
other side and how to get there