Frozen

Can’t you feel the cold magic?
Bitter air, but bundled up
in puffer coats and chunky boots,
clasping hot drinks with icy hands,
pulling off gloves to feel the heat on our fingers,
or to pick at roasted chestnuts,
unwinding scarves from our necks as we enter cafes,
disassembling and reassembling on repeat, store to store,
the sharp trajectory of everyone’s travel,
no dilly-dallying, no sauntering, no stopping for selfies,
we have places to be, coffee to acquire, trains to catch,
and we share in this frigid, collective experience,
and we love it.

The crisp clatter of our winter city,
simultaneously so uninviting
and yet never feeling more like belonging to us;
it is our resilient, steely tool,
somehow at its most festive when frozen.

~ New York City