by Barbara Lydecker Crane

Beyond brisk,
a brutal blast—
Labrador landed
in Boston last week.
I brace my brittle body
against the brunt
of wind abridging
breath. Beneath boots,
sidewalk snow crackles
like broken vertebrae
but icy broomstick legs
brush and shuffle still.
This breakneck day
my bronchial bray:
“Oh, for Brazil!”