ROOTS
the madrigal, volume ii
Snow Angels
by andre peltier
The northern slopes
of Michigan,
blanketed in quiet
snow,
were for sledding
and sledding only.
We ducked under
electrified
fence and barbed wire.
We pulled
saucers and Flexible Fliers
through knee-deep drifts,
tromped to the
frozen creek,
watched rabbits and
deer forage frozen food.
We lounged
along the banks of
the icy creek
making snow angels:
arms and legs akimbo.
Those deep impressions,
like the foot-prints of
the white-tailed rabbits,
hoof-prints of
the white-tailed deer,
slowly faded as the winter
gave way to spring,
or as the next February
storm erased them
from hillsides and leafless
forest floors.
Those carefree days
also erased
like the angels.
Like old photos,
memories curl and fade,
melting into history,
on the northern slopes
of forgotten days.
Andre F. Peltier is a Lecturer III at Eastern Michigan University where he has taught African American Literature, Afrofuturism, Science Fiction, Poetry, and Freshman Composition since 1998. He lives in Ypsilanti, MI, with his wife, children, turtles, dog, and cat. His poetry has appeared in Big Whoopie Deal, In Parentheses, Griffel Magazine, Fahmidan Journal, The Write Launch, Spillover Mag, and Tofu Ink and is forthcoming in The Great Lakes Review, La Piccioletta Barca, Prospectus, C*nsorship Mag, Melbourne Culture Corner, Openwork Magazine, The JFA Human Rights Journal, Sledgehammer, and an anthology from Quillkeepers Press. In his free time, he obsesses about soccer and comic books. Twitter: @aandrefpeltier