The Winters

The Winter Man lives under the ice at the bottom of the lake. He likes to look up and watch the ducks flat funny feet move the water as they do, tickling the thick fur atop his big head. He drools in his sleep and makes the ice, very gradually.

The Winter Man can breathe the water! How? Nobody knows, but he can. Sometimes bubbles come up from the bottom and when they pop, you can hear him snore, like a rusty old chainsaw.

Most people think the Winter Man is bad. Scary. But he’s not. I know he’s not. I know because he sometimes makes the ground thump with his big heart, you can’t hear it, but you can feel it with the bottoms of your feet.

Sometimes the Winter Man misses his Winter Wife, the Winter Woman, who turns herself to snow and rides the wind to coat the trees and late blooming flowers when the Harvest is over.

The Winter Woman, we call her First Frost. Then we know it’s time for some big changes. We take out our coats and put away sweaters. There’s always a fire in the iron stove where the soot has been cleaned away.