When you walk on a winter day

you turn the corner, and the afternoon
sun catches you against the wall.
Sure, ice patches the road
and slush still fills the gutters, but you feel
the late season warmth fall on you
like a long slug of brandy. It almost
burns. It feels so good. You pause,
but then hurry on. The winter wind
still bites at your bones as the sun
starts to set fast. You need to stop
by the grocery store to buy something
for the kids’ dinner and get home before
the darkness shuffles in around you.