Once upon a field of snow

a babe was put to breast;

his mother’s sparkling eyes aglow

with love, she did impress

his love for her so deep and true

that every ounce of his soul knew

     his love for her.

     His love for her

waxed stronger daily as he grew.

Once upon a field of snow

a young man passed the test;

he earned the right to be her beau,

with passion he’d invest

his love for her, and thus he’d woo

his future bride; so fierce and true

     his love for her.

     His love for her

gave his heart wings, with which they flew.

Once upon a field of snow

a heart was laid to rest;

his soul mate, he had watched her go,

his tear-filled eyes confessed

his love for her, so strong and true.

His future, shaded gray and blue

     his love for her.

     His love for her

would somehow help him see it through.

(c) 2017 - dustygrein

** Note: This form is called a trijan refrain, and is one of my favorite poetic forms to work in. The triple stanza structure lends itself well to story arcs that encompass lifetimes.

Once upon a field of snow:

White intoxication lit her face

     lanterns leaving patterns

     in the harboring snow

     sorrowful piles of gloom

Alabaster white hands

     blend in incandescent glow

     as booted feet sink

     into powdery quick sand

Lemon yellow winter sun

     echoed on sallow skin

     airborne snowflakes

     of butterfly flutters

Knotted and pleated mounds

     oyster gray clouds

     whipped snow

     in froth of dreams

Sparse windblown tree soldiers

     march to refuge

     snowdrifts plodding

     single file down hills

Howls of sleeting whiteness

     form blankets

     shrouding white hot pain

     veiled gauzy curtains

Fields of crystal diamonds

     adorn her throat

     wind breathing its last

     on vanilla breast hills.

Once upon a field of snow,  the snow bleed red 

a pitter patter 

rabbits imprints  in a milky placid 

beads strung on a string of crystallized dewdrops 

that waltz through the sky 

chandeliers shimmer type of winter 

a white sheet of breast milked dreams 

covered the emerald grass 

that withered in through the cracks 

reaching up 

curling it ends around 

the pinky of little children 

that longed for an Alice in Wonderland Spring

their eyes lost and mesmerized in the pain that held their souls 

their smile held their memories 

they couldn't feel the cold 

but they liked the way the grass stabbed in their skin 

and produced a thickening sweet liquid that looked like the color of momma's lipstick 

The cold came 

the wind whistled

the air felt dead 

the children 

digged 

until 

the 

felt 

the 

grass 

their 

skin 

the 

grass rubbed 

furiously

until 

their 

skin 

bleed 

ruby 

the 

red 

trickled 

down 

the 

field  

of 

snow

filling 

the 

snow 

with 

the 

blood 

of 

innocence

and 

grew 

tulips 

from 

the 

memories 

of the past 

they  had to bleed to feel again

Once upon a field of snow

The fareies prepared for war

this is how I know, the troll

Under the bridge told me so!

Yes the elves and the fareies did

scream and shout while all about it

Was snowing and blowing and they couldn't see where they were going.

So in the end my tale is done,

Nothing good ever came from

A fight , so just go with the flow

have fun being you!

That's where I found him, just sitting there like he belonged. Which he didn't. His dark brown skin and short, curly black hair made him stick out like a sore thumb on the snowy backdrop.

     I studied him for a moment, both curious and wary. In my line of work, as a sort of assassin, you can never be too careful about who or what you see or deal with. And this was probably someone I needed to be careful about, seeing the high-tech security that kept the training compound safe. Just my Team and I were the only ones supposed to be here.

     I carefully made my way towards him, careful not to make noise on the crunchy snow. But he heard me anyway.

     Gracefully, and without the use of his arms whatsoever, he rose from his cross-legged position and turned around to face me. "I guess I shoulda introduced myself before breaking in," he said casually like this was an everyday affair for him. Who knew? Maybe it was.

     "Well, who do I have the honor of meeting?" I snapped, raising an eyebrow. 

     "Jezron Hezekiah Rex," he responded confidently, smiling.

     "Lots of Zs," I remarked, before glaring at him. "How did you find out about this place? This is a top-secret facility, and you could get in a lot of trouble over this."

     "Top secret for whom?" he grinned. "It was easy for me to find out about it."

     Seeing that I found nothing humorous with his reply, he became serious again.

     "I know all about you guys."

     "Who doesn't?" I snorted. "Let's see...we've only practically saved the U.S. a total of about fifty or sixty times."

     "Stop exaggerating, Jackson," he admonished.

     "Oh, no, don't you dare use my name!" I commanded.

     "Um, okay." He looked properly ashamed of himself. But only for a second. Then he looked at me pleadingly. "Please, I don't have anywhere else to go!"

     I was confused. "What does this have to do with my name?"

     "Nothing!" he exclaimed, exasperated. "I...I want to join your team."

     "You what?!" I gasped.

     He held me with a steady gaze. "Please."

     I looked away from him, letting my eyes trail over the blinding white snow, thinking. I'm not first in command, not even second in command. "You'll have to talk to Chris," I said at last, still not looking at him.

     "Okay. Let's go."

     "But first, you get out of this compound, and come in the proper way," I ordered. "Otherwise, this is very embarrassing for me."

Once upon a field of snow

My mother sheltered me

She loves me this I know

Through hail or storm, wind or rain, my mother she will be.

Once upon a field of snow

My father loved me

He held me close, and in whispers said, "My dear child be free."

Once upon a field of snow

My sister saved me

She wrapped me, shielded me in her warm arms willingly.

Once upon a field of snow

My brother killed me.

He buried me in a field of snow

For all eternity.

Once, upon a field of snow,

I stood

hate filling

every pricked hair on my body.

          Dear reader, are you somewhere warm as you read this?

          Are you somewhere safe?

He dragged me from my bed 

into that frozen graveyard,

littered with the brittle corpses of

          grape fern,

          bitterroot,

          arnica,

to stand beside a black-cold creek.

          If you read this 

          in the sunshine,

          you will not understand.

My job was to watch him fish.

My job was to witness his power

over living things

including myself.

My job was to stand quietly

no matter how often 

he raised his rod.

Where I was not hate, I was numb.

Where I was not numb, I was waiting.

For a man cannot hook and shoot and destroy forever,

but the fish will always run.

          It is a mercy of the green spring,

          dear reader,

          that we forget the traumas of winter.

          In your sun-warmed skin,

          you can hardly recall frozen fields and frightened fish.

          Revel, but be not complacent.

          The seasons turn.

Once upon a field of snowfall

I saw a spirit come

Its voice a whispered hush did call

So I heard only some

Drift out here it seemed to tell me

Discover what you need to see

Drift out here

Drift out here

And find the man you wish to be

Once upon a field of snowfall

I ventured out so strong

Marching through the drifts wide and tall

It didn't take me long

What is here? I asked the spirit

Have I gotten close or near it

What is here?

What is here?

Waiting hurts, I can not bear it

Once upon a field of snowfall

I learned my folly true

I ran in to the spirit's wall

And never made it through

What are you? the spirit taunted

Think that you're so strong and vaunted?

What are you?

What are you?

To trust in words of the haunted

#fieldofsnow #poetry #challenge #trijanrefrain #folly