Ugh the snow

Ugh.
The snow.

If it were October,
I would be giddy at the soft flakes
cascading
down,
tugging at the already ready to fall leaves,
blanketing the last living flowers into sleep,
reminding me of quiet, snowy nights.

But it's May.
The snow will rip the baby leaves
AND THEIR BRANCHES
from the trees
before they are able to shade us from the hot summer sun.
It will smother the fledgling vegetable gardens.
Tulips, lilacs--the flowers will die.

I will not wear my winter coat,
or gloves,
or a hat.
I will not shovel any snow
or remove it from the windshield.
It is time for sunshine and warmth,
for a light jacket and no socks,
for windows open at night,
for putting the space heater away.

Not for cold and seeing snowflakes
in the umbrella of orange
beneath the streetlight outside my house.