This place has become my refuge,
an asylum to ease my soul.
Here I don’t have to dwell upon the ignorance of the world,
or perhaps a recent misjudgment.
Here is my place to think of you.

As I approach my solitude,
the familiar surroundings stimulate my dormant senses.
The dry, shriveled leaves crinkle beneath my feet,
still frosted from the recent frigid weather.
Powdery snow dusts the smooth surface of the frozen pond,
stirred up by the wintry breeze and carried through the air.
The bare trees enclose me and my troubled thoughts,
keeping out everything but the orange of the setting sun.
The sky is streaked with every shade between red and purple,
reflecting the ever-changing canvas of my mind.

You will return soon, I know,
but just how long can I take?
I cannot ignore the sharp pains in my heart,
pierced by the cold shards of love.