Shoveling Snow
Posted by: Kim Justesen on: January 29, 2008
Who knew? Shoveling snow is a great way to get ideas for writing. 
(no, that’s not me) And in recent weeks here in the Salt Lake Valley, we’ve certainly had enough to shovel. Just yesterday I spent an hour removing nearly a foot of the stuff off my driveway and sidewalks. My poor kitty went outside for some fresh air and nearly disappeared in the back yard.
But all that monotonous activity turns out to be good for my creativity. I began thinking about places I’d rather be – spurred primarily by the fact that I’m leaving on Saturday to spend a week in Mexico with my family – and I was reminded of a backpacking trip with my husband (then fiance’) about 15 years ago. It was physically challenging, blissfully romantic (really), and created for us one of our fondest memories. As I pushed snow around, trying to find more room for stacking it, I developed a poem in my head. As soon as I was finished, I rushed in and wrote it down:
(^This is the real place!)
Red Pine Lake
The moon climbed so high its light strained to reach us
reflecting in broken shards scattered across the chilled water.
Coyotes called us from a distant peak
their voices eerie in the mountain air.
Your pale skin in the vague illumination seemed unearthly,
but your warm touch grounded me and made me brave.
A night breeze filtered through the boughs of pines
and whispered to us in words we felt but couldn’t hear.
Thin clouds tried to blot the moon’s weak effort
but it seeped through their feeble fingers and continued its course.
Morning found us damp with dew, our lungs filled with clear air,
as hummingbirds dove and darted among the late summer wildflowers.
We watched the lake as it watched the sky and clouds,
and regretted our short stay and our descent from heaven.
