Afternoon in February

Afternoon in February 

"The day is ending,
The night is descending;
The marsh is frozen,
The river dead.

Through clouds like ashes
The red sun flashes
On village windows
That glimmer red."

--  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 

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In the Northern Hemisphere, 

February has been described in uncomplimentary terms 

for centuries.

For some, February is a restless and inhospitable month.

The cold, the snow, the being cooped up inside longer than we want to be

all coalesce into cabin fever.

Others find February merely a bland and unremarkable bridge 

between the sympathies of January and the promises of March.

But in cold February,

the sun is more appreciated 

when it breaks through the heavy gray clouds

and sends them on their way.

I can attest to this: 

There is nothing more enjoyable

than taking an afternoon nap 

stretched out under the blanket of a February sun.

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