you don't realize

this is the last time

you will close the windows

this year.

You close them on a day

when the sun is sharp

like angels' wings

and the air bites your cheeks.

You're not thinking

you should turn the stubborn locks

to seal out the fingers of winter frost.

You close them one afternoon

and then it has been two weeks

or four

before you notice

you have been closed in,

and closed off,

and the long, gray time has begun.

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