Iron anchor rests on frozen stone
Quercus roots embrace the cold alone
Winter wind sings through the narrow lane
Taxus baccata bears the season's strain
Cobblestones remember every tread
Frost patterns bloom where footsteps fled
The anchor hears the subway's distant hum
Dormant buds await the spring to come
It listens deep where shadows gather
No voice is raised no need to shatter
The alley holds its frozen breath
Until the thaw brings life from death
Salix branches weep in silver light
Helleborus blooms through longest night
Iron ears catch every whispered sound
Roots drink deep in frozen ground
It listens deep where shadows gather
No voice is raised no need to shatter
The alley holds its frozen breath
Until the thaw brings life from death
Patience measured in geological time
Silica and carbon slow design
The anchor knows what gardeners know
Spring returns beneath the winter snow
Galanthus pushes through the crystalline crust
Anchor feels the season's fragile trust
Muted brass of distant midnight trains
Vibrates through the metal's frozen veins
Hammond tones drift from a basement door
Organ swells across the alley floor
Gibson strings bend low and sweet and slow
Warmth returns to earth below
It listens deep where shadows gather
No voice is raised no need to shatter
The alley holds its frozen breath
Until the thaw brings life from death
Iron dreams in rust and root
Spring will come the anchor knows
