First Person
Thawing The Heart
By Susan Gibbons
Email: SGibbonsIA at msn dot com
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December 25, 2007

One step outside,
On a below zero day.
My skin tightens.
A swift, shallow inhalation.
My lungs fill slightly,
Quickly. Exhilerating.
The oxegen is thin.
It smells of ice.
The car radio comes on.
A sad, never ending song.
The warming air
Closes around me.
Like a homemade sweater.
Knit with memories.
The icicle in the corner
of my eye melts.
A tear is pulled down
my cheeks.
Moisture falls onto
my downy coat.
It is salty and warm.
So much to melt.
Slowly. Very slowly.
Healing is warm.
Peacefully painful.
On a bitter, winter day,
The heart is thawed.

About the author:
I write a mix of fact and fiction, just to keep my friends guessing. I just started working with senior citizens and realized I have a lot left to do, so I'll have a good story to tell my grandchildren one day.

Old Sweet Songs: A Prairie Home Companion 1974-1976

Old Sweet Songs

Lovingly selected from the earliest archives of A Prairie Home Companion, this heirloom collection represents the music from earliest years of the now legendary show: 1974–1976. With songs and tunes from jazz pianist Butch Thompson, mandolin maestro Peter Ostroushko, Dakota Dave Hull and the first house band, The Powdermilk Biscuit Band (Adam Granger, Bob Douglas and Mary DuShane).

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