My Mother on a Winter Day
Yesterday, my mother made a snowman.
She slipped on her red mittens
and her knit hat, pulled on her boots,
and walked outside into the winter light.
She rolled a ball of snow
until it grew to an appropriate size,
made two more, then stacked each of them
making sure to pack the snow
around the cracks to cement its structure.
She placed her hat on its head,
found two long sticks for arms,
used blueberries for the eyes,
and cut a strawberry
to create a Cupid’s bow mouth.
She stopped to take in her handiwork
and breathe the fresh, cold air.
Such a change from the humid heat
of her Manila childhood.
Caitlin O’Halloran is a biracial Filipino-American writer living in Rochester, New York. Her poetry has been published in literary magazines, including ONE ART, Third Wednesday, and Panoply. Her poems also appear in the anthology, Tiny Moments Vol. V (Bronze Bird Books). www.caitlinohalloran.com
