On Winter (or: A Reflection on Motherhood / Teaching / Living During Impossibly Nightmarish Times with Overwhelming Expectations, Creeping Existential Dread and Growing Isolation)*
Winter’s in a bad mood.
She’s crabby
and blustery
and just wants everyone out of her way,
Don’t try her,
even if you think
you’re prepared.
You’re not.
I mean, you can if you want.
Gather your coat
those long undies
your boots
the softie gloves, hat, scarf, earmuffs.
Steel yourself
but honey, I warned you.
Winter is tired.
January is heavy, and hard, and
she’s carried the whole thing.
And her reward is February.
All of it.
Don’t ask about March.
She’s had it up to here, and
she’s not playing games.
So maybe your best bet
with your “but winter’s so COLD”
and your “why can’t it be SPRING already”
is to keep those complaints quiet
before she blows ’em
right back in ya.
*For all of the women who, like me, feel like they can’t keep themselves together, and like me, have felt they’re the only ones who feel frayed and unsettled. We’re not alone.
Soapbox: The Way I see Things 
I’m betting a lot of people can relate to this poem. Even the sunny days are cold, and there’s no sign of grass on the ground in Connecticut. I’m ready for April. Great personification in the poem, as well as word rhythm!
Oh, Lanie – this is about January but also, so much more. I love the tone (“I mean, you can if you want” and “Honey, I warned you” and “She’s not playing games”!). Putting on my warmest, strongest clothes and steeling myself for the days ahead. Frayed and unsettled. But NOT alone… thank you!
The sun is shining. The temperature is in the single digits. The sky is blue. The wind is blowing dropping the temps lower. Winter has a classic “I’ll show you” attitude. We can – will – get through whatever winter throws our way.
The older I get, the more I dislike winter. Your poem made me feel seen. Thanks for reminding me that we are not alone.
I felt this poem in all of my post-menopausal glory, Lainie. Your advice, at the end, is spot on.
That photo of the playset buried in the snow is perfect for this rant of a poem. I love how you give voice to winter. Leave her alone! Is an apt warning.
Love the whimsical way you wrote about Winter’s “bad mood.” Clever personification of “Winter” and then each month as additional, separate characters “January,” “February,” “March.” Your use of authorial intrusion to set up intimacy is perfectly timed throughout your piece, each one sounding a warning to your reader — “I mean, you can if you want” and “but Honey, I warned you” and “So maybe your best bet”
This rocks! I think my favorite part is actually your title, and how it just lays it all out there. Thanks for putting into words the grumpies I’ve been feeling lately!
Glad to know we’re all feeling the crabbiness of the season in all the ways. Great poem!
Your title and this marvelous poem are magnificent. I am smiling and with you all the way!
So good – I like how you were able to really punch this – from the title, to the picture to the end.
I wrote about January too!