The Lantern

Oh, winter...⁣
What golden waves of color you paint,⁣
Barely lighting the ground with your dusky rays.⁣
The way widens, so I keep my eyes open,⁣
Lest everything change and die⁣
⁣
My days are spent seeking shelter from old stories.⁣
Holding a lantern to those who need a light⁣
Through hardened ground and clearer paths through the trees,⁣
Air so light it electrifies my veins.⁣
⁣
Oh, winter...⁣
Everything has changed⁣
And everything stays the same,⁣
In this life and the next.⁣
But all I can do is stay silent and wait.⁣
I’ve done all that I can do.⁣
⁣
Yet I work to make my lantern brighter.⁣
In guiding the way, I always find the sun⁣
And winter’s milky golden glow,⁣
Just warm enough to soften the heart in eclipses’ chill.⁣
Keeping eyes open,⁣
Stronger every day,⁣
And waiting still.