Editor’s Note: Arrias maintains the front on the Chesapeake. We were brushed by the same swath of cold wet air last night. It brought the first barely-measurable snow of the season to the Commonwealth. We had other communications from a square state out west with wind blowing a dozen degrees below zero (F) behind a mass of snow that reminded us of what real winters can be like…

– Vic

Ice Dragons

Alone on the high steppe the dacha sits,
Ice dragons from their mountain caves descend,
From their icy breath the Captain will defend,
With discipline, good humor, and his wits.
The Mistress of the house has been trapped,
But rescued by neighbors both fair and true,
In a local Keep for a day or two,
Until a safe return is well and clearly mapped.
These fearsome dragons of wind, snow and ice,
Can freeze a traveler, bury a house,
None are safe, neither a Lord nor a mouse,
Imprudent travelers pay a high price.
For now the winter storm does outside rage,
Drafting plans inside sits the High Plains Sage.

Another Storm

Winter is here, raw and dark, wet and gray,
Inside the Keep a cheery fire and warm,
A wizard works, his contacts to inform,
Toiling through the night and into day.
The Castle stands outside Emerald City,
Within sight of the mad machinations,
Truly insane, beyond all expectations,
Systemic Lunacy, by Committee.
Towering fortress of red brick stands guard,
Wary of a different kind of storm,
As these loons do our nation transform,
A Wizard notes how our nation’s been scarred.
Wizard, Diarist, the Bard of Big Pink,
Watches, teaches, thus more clearly we think.

Copyright 2023 Arrias
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