Thawing

A thousand years
I’ve lain
Low
Frozen
Stuck To the ground
Like a stone
in ice
Dormant
Too ashamed
And too afraid
To pick me up
Move from this place
Trapped
Weak
I’ve dreamed
Hideous wretch
Broken
Tapped
Useless as a gargoyle
Fixed in time
Cold
Grey
Lost to the world
Long ago
The winter only deepening
Permafrost
Encrusted in layers of ice
Poor veneer
Old
Swaddled
Not even the northern sky
It’s dancing lights
Penetrated
crystals in my blood
And sluggish mind
Drugged
Down
And out
As I slept away
And wasted
life
A shadow
Winter’s mouth
Bone white fangs
Ugly
Sharp
And terrible
The winds would blow
Shelves and dunes
Of frost and snow
They would howl
And I’d echo
Like a bell
Broken though
Ringing
Yet
Hollow
Sad sad song
A bitter diamond
Hard
Brittle
At heart of glacier
Not much value
Far out
Deep in
final frontier
Not what I wanted
Never
Why did I stay
Never
How I got here
Forever
Story for
Another day
Long
Dark
Night
Once
I thought I heard
A new sound
Not my own
At first
The wolves perhaps
But I thought not
I know them well
The songs they sing
I can tell
Back to sleep
Then
The moon above
Whispering
Another spell
At least
That’s what I
Tell myself
Do demons dream
I wonder
As I grow my crust
But there
Again
A different tone
This time I’m sure
Not my own
Lump-dump
Alert?!
Tugging at my mind
Creeping
Is this real
If I weren’t frozen
Stiff
My hair would rise
What’s this
I
feel
?
I find
I’m focused
On passing
time
Rip van
Some ancient story
I once knew
What’s this now
New
Thoughts forming
In
This dusty rind
Lump-dump
Drip
Oh my
.....
I
feel
my Heart
Beating
Again
That old rhythm
Quickening
Keeping time
I
Feel
My fingers
Toes
Oh my
Lump-dump
Drip
Crack
Above me
The moon
Glowing
Warmly
She smiles
I smile
Finally
Show me
I look about me
Don’t know where I am
Don’t really care
Do I
Nah
Long walk ahead
Much to think about
A
New dream
And
Sights to see
Not ready to dance
Yet
Too weak to
Shout
But
I start to move
Shove off
This slush
And tread through
And
Away from
Always
Winter land
One heavy
Footstep
After the next
I’ll
Drag
Myself
Out
Drifts deep as my neck
So
Pulse
Thundering
Steady now
Reviving
Warming up again
First time
After forever
I find I’m glad
To be alive
Instead of sad
Not dead
I start moving
Gladly
Away from this stand
I do know one thing
This is
Definitely
Hibernation’s end