Winter Night

Only the young will brave the snow And catch the flakes and watch them go In swirling patterns up and down The length and breadth of all the town. Only the young can laugh to see White, sudden blossoms on a tree That were not there an hour ago, Or lift their hearts to see the snow Reach out its hand and turn the night Into a wonderland of white.

The old will rise and turn the lock When frozen fists of snowflakes knock Upon the pane, along the sill, And break the pine trees on the hill. The old will draw the curtains tight And have no traffic with the night; But they will stir the fire and pile The hearth with logs, and afterwhile, When they are nodding in its glow, Live once again lost years of snow.