A Snow Death

The snow prayed for a long, cold winter, kneeling in icicles
Clasping thin clear fingers together. And so it was.
Everyone striped in scarves, bundles of wool and
Stars in our eyes or someone thrown snow there.
Died a death five times in five minutes, a born survivor.
He said he never even saw her,
What with the christmas card look those trees had,
And the kids in fur trimmed hoods,
Thinking they might throw a
Girl, 21
They were taking aim from the roadside,
Scooping the powder, eyes flashing
You see I never saw her, trawled her
Ten yards before they shouted
Watch out! Snow fight!
Snow is a muffler, a silencer,
Something so beautiful about the whiteness of it
Something graceful if you remember it slowed down
If you turn off the sound, the hard thump and crack
Deafening in the silence of a snowed under day,
He’s ashamed to say it, it was almost balletic -
The lickety-split of the snow, packed hard by mittened hands
Flying straight at you, the smash of the windscreen.
Afterwards, the snow looked cherry flavoured, sweet slush,
Sickly dribbles and pots of redness they were desperate to hide.