A pale wintery light floods the bare furrows
As earth drops her mantle
Laid bare to North Eastern winds
Dark fingered branches
Frame the scene
And steal the unexpected glow
Locking secrets beneath their bows
Protection offered
In elemental fusion
As dry pine needles crunch beneath our boots
We skim the forest edge
Deliberately
To keep the light
And security of forest depths
Deep in thought
Until we turn for home
And into the raw wind that rattles
The towering pines
Redemptive and free.
Ruth Partridge 