Louise Longson: a poem

Why Snow Cries

When each part touches,

divided arms

unite

in an infinite

matrix; apparent strength

hiding its true fragility.

Only after it becomes so cold

and pressure is applied – heavy

boots stamping down on

a frozen surface, dense

enough to take it for a while –

does the whole world beneath

your feet begin to break.

It is a cold contract;

squealing sounds muzzled by

plangent pitch-perfect silence.

Louise Longson lives in West Oxfordshire. She is a qualified psychotherapist specialising in trauma and enduring mental health issues. Currently she works to support those distressed by chronic loneliness and social isolation. Her work appears in various publications, including One Hand Clapping, Fly on the Wall, Dreich, Nymphs, The Ekphrastic Review, Drifting Sands and Reach. She is a winner of the Dreich "Slims" competition 2021 with her chapbook Hanging Fire. You can find her here.