Snowy Totem

Trudging through ivory drifts of introspection    
I warmly embrace winter, the season of the soul    
seeking to uncover what lies buried beneath    
my parka    
my sweater    
the snow    
     
Riding clear on the icy cutting wind      
a lonesome baying fills the still wilderness    
echoing in my ear for the first time    
though no stranger to my wandering spirit    
     
Stopping mid step I can sense his presence    
so I pivot slowly scanning the snowy wood    
in hope of a glimpse but in need of an answer    
seeking that which brings both calm and fear    
     
Finally I see him shrouded in powdered splendor    
sitting regally beneath a yielding spruce    
white, black, and gray, the colors of wisdom    
with amber eyes that never run from enduring truths    
     
At first we just look at each other    
beast and man, guide and pilgrim    
a wild mirror and its tamed reflection    
awaiting the moment when the lesson begins    
     
Then I look closer and study his aspect    
seeing a playful pack and blissful solitude    
cunning strength and quiet grace    
all in harmony with his most darkest elements    
     
Suddenly without warning he rises and departs    
leaving me both awestruck and enlightened    
standing waist deep in snow I smile contented    
before I turn back towards myself now renewed