Snow off a Duck’s Back

He suggested
I write about
snow off a duck’s back 
about my sensitivity to 
atmospheric changes – 
however slight – 
and about how 
the effects of newness 
can be just 
that much
more difficult to 
shake than the 
waters of familiarity

And I thought about 
how that’s the case 
even when the newness 
is beautiful: 
powdery soft and 
open to being melted by
light and warmth
I remembered that fun 
and appreciation don’t 
have to be perfect 
upon entry and
that joy doesn’t have to 
be alone and un-muddied 
to be felt

I breathed a sigh of relief 
and felt silly and grateful and 
cosy and cold, marveling 
at the fluffy down feathers of 
young freedom and companionship 
warming my spine 
as we floated along 
through the crisp 
novelty of 
winter wonder, 
resisting change, 
opening to it, 
imperfectly and 
muddily and 
joyfully together, finding 
our ever-changing home 
in all