December Theme, a Trifle Late

December Walking
The air outside is so cold
it makes me cough with my first breath.
walking the three blocks home I
feel myself shrinking from the frigid wind
hunkering down in my fur-lined coat
wishing I could slither inside my skin
or underneath the matted snow
and hibernate like the gophers do
with full bellies and dreams of spring.
The ice is thick and tricky beneath my feet
one wrong step and I will fall
I wish for the gracefulness and ease
of a skater showing off on a frozen lake
but instead I shuffle along with the tiny, skittering steps
of someone just trying to get home.
I cross silent streets of white
climb up mountains and down again
take tiny comfort in the steam of my breath against the scarf covering my face
twitch my tingling fingers so they won't go numb
and useless as twigs
then the keys are in my fumbling grasp
the lock gives on the first try
my
door is open and warmth is there to hold me.
I unfurl, I grow tall and languorous
with relish and relief
I stretch, I jump and spin, kick off my caked boots and dance on the air
I preen and purr like a cat.
Then I sink into the comfort
of feeling human again.