Chilly Dawn

When women say, “Get out of here” – “Just leave” and “Close the door”,
That's not the meaning of their words, it's really something more –
(Of course in danger, threat, or pain, that's something else again)
It's best to not take heed of it, but in your home remain.

What's really meant is, “Smarten up”, “Stop doing that”, “Get real”,
For no one wants a broken home, but rather strength of steel;
Of course that may be harder than is possible right now,
But in the main, it's fixable once people catch on how.

One problem is it's been so long a lot of things got wrecked;
And folks have fretted, chafed, and hurt, with chronic pain in neck
That hope is gone, they're disengaged, and moved inside their hearts,
So little kindling's left for them to breakfast-fire start.

When we were kids, long years ago, we drew our heat from coal;
In winter, with the frosted panes, and outside fields of snow
We'd see our breath inside the house, and snuggle in our beds;
While daddy put the fire on, you'd only see our heads.

We kept our clothes inside our beds to keep them warm at night;
We'd change from our pajamas under covers – quite a sight;
When it warmed up from flowing-heat up through the registers
We'd slip into our shoes and head for breakfast-stove downstairs.

We'd cluster ’round the stove and warm our fronts and then our backs,
And scuttled to the table set or other chores when asked;
But we preferred to huddle near the heat of breakfast-fire
Which roared within the kitchen stove – “stay warm” our main desire.

Now I'm a dad, though things have changed, and parents share such loads;
We heat with electricity, or oil, or gas, not coal;
The task remains, in its own way – to build the breakfast-fire,
Which in our winter night has died – that former warm desire.

While others snuggle in their bids for lack of freeing heat,
It's up to us to brave the cold and get up on our feet,
And make the changes we must make to kindle morning-fire,
So all can gather round its warmth fulfilled in their desire.

So in a sense, our wives are right – “Get out of here”, they say –
Get out of bed and face the cold, light fire for this new day;
For that's our job, quite hard sometimes if we've no kindling kept,
But even that is possible – at least the stove's not wrecked.

You'll need some kindling for today, and for tomorrow's fire,
To make re-starting easier if that's what you desire;
So, “Smarten up”, “Stop doing that”, “Get real”, is good advice,
A simple step to ease the load – for mourning times have ice.

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