Black ice on the road, too slippery
for even the cautious little steps
of our desperate dance for balance;
arms outstretched, muscles tensed,
focused on stability, intent on schedule
Ice coated grasses crunch underfoot.
Tree branches clatter in the wind.
Mist mutes the highway sounds.
Even farm dogs barking as we pass
don’t pierce our cocoons.
No moon, no stars, yet the air glows -
reflections in the mist of far off city lights
and lonely farms beckoning.
Underfoot, patches of snow gleam white,
tracing a safe path through the chrysalis of night.
The mist in the air, dew drops on my eyelashes,
change even the pebbles on the road
with layer upon layer of ice
until every surface
is cocooned, agate.
Then, without thinking, our steps slow, breathing stills.
We lift our faces to the mist
and step from our cocoons of time and schedule,
metamorphosed there, on the road,
by walking icy through the night.