Little Ave

Victorian chimneys silently streaming

Ribbons of moist, warm air

In the dark of night

Little Ave is locked in embrace of

Crunchy coldness

As motherly princess paints canine eyes

Showing paintings and pictures of

Children laughing 

At the 100 year-old boy with a cane

Inoculating against

The brutal wind that bites outside the door

Frozen wood snapping under foot

Imagining a new warmth 

Bathing all in fond new adventures

As purple lilies adorn dining table

And palm outstretched offers new understanding

Chinese fortune unopened

Unneeded