"Witchita Winters" by Avereigh Watson

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The neighborhood pond was a frozen lake

Like a chocolate sheet cake glazed 

Too early out of the oven,

So sweet. We would drink 

The winter water pooled above the ice

And pretend we didn't’t feel the grime coat 

Our tongues and grit our teeth.

Snow was full of endless possibilities,

Frosted thin over the lawn. 

We scraped flakes together 

to make ourselves a brother,

Smaller than us, with spare buttons

Sinking through his head. 

It wasn't as easy as cartoons made it:

Frosty and Frankenstein were both

Far more alive than our watery friend.

It left us with only sugar and spice to play with.

Like a cinnamon river too bitter

Without a sugar cube sailboat 

Some things are simply better stuck together. 

Like three angels on the ground,

Close enough to brush wings with enough sunlight. 

They might dust the back of your clothes

And seep through socks, 

but the numbness won’t come 

because there is too much warmth

Radiating from the heart with this

Convection kind of love.