Snow at Night
I check under the streetlight whenever I pass the window,
the still night scene like a Hopper painting, tranquil and perfect,
or the set on a stage, ready for the players, the houselights dim.
I anticipate the first action of the play,
and I grow impatient—
the stillness, the leaden sky as the afternoon aged
weighted with promise,
the early darkness,
then suddenly a bit of movement under the arc of the streetlight,
I hold my breath and still myself—was that it?
then a pause, then again, at an angle, a bit of ash gently drifting,
and another, then two at once,
then five,
then too many to count, meandering,
all in the same direction,
appear in the streetlight’s cone of illumination, then disappear.
I am transfixed
as the flakes simply continue as if without agenda,
my neighbors’ windows are all covered,
lights and flickering TVs behind curtains and blinds,
I am the only one who has witnessed the beginning.
poem Snow at Night ©2006 Bernadette E. Kazmarski
I don't know about you, but I'm waiting for that first snowfall this evening, quietly appearing as if by magic under the streetlight. We haven't had nearly enough snow in the past two winters, and it's already the middle of February. I hope we get a good one.
I don’t know about you, but I’m waiting for that first snowfall, quietly appearing as if by magic under the streetlight.
I read this poem as part of my 2017 poetry reading “Walking Around” which featured poetry, paintings and photos from literally walking around my hometown, as one of the experiences we share in a small town.
My painting in this post, “Alley at Dusk”, is a small acrylic painting from a photo I took walking home from something at dusk and it’s part of my gallery of paintings titled “My Home Town”.
This poem can also be found on”Paths I Have Walked,” my writing website: Snow at Night.
Since I joined Substack last year and saw the podcast feature, I've wanted to give it a try and see what I could do with it.
I decided to start with some of my poems, this being the first one, inspired by the snowfall we've had this evening.
I've recorded this on my phone, so no high-tech equipment, so I hope it sounds okay.
I have plenty of poetry and essays that I've written that I've wanted to share this way.
So I'll be starting with things I've already done and hoping to work myself to new and different poetry essays and maybe even some fiction later on this year.
Thank you for listening.
This is Bernadette with my cats in my kitchen.
Have a beautiful day!
Snow at Night