Winter’s Edge
Everyone wants warm
sticky pink blossoms.
That sick semen smell
of ornamental pear.
I would love to know
what is so bad about bare
black branches cutting indigo
frigid shadow into diamond snow.
*
Julia Caroline Knowlton is a Professor of French and Creative Writing at Agnes Scott College in Atlanta. Julia has a PhD in French Literature (UNC-Chapel Hill) and an MFA in Poetry (Antioch University, Los Angeles). The author of one full-length poetry collection, three poetry chapbooks, a memoir and a children’s book, she has twice been named Georgia Author of the Year. Her work has also been recognized by the Academy of American Poets. She lives in Atlanta and Paris.
Knowlton is Guest Editor of ONE ART’s In a Nutshell: an anthology of micropoems.
I enjoy the rewards in this poem: the seasonal contrast, “the sick semen smell,” and the rich sounds in the second stanza that give winter the winning edge. Thank you, Julia.