Snow Day
By: Charles Giuliano - Jan 21, 2020
Snow Day
Winter in the Berkshires
Bright brisk day
Brushing off the car
Defrosting windshield
Cranking up heater
Just round the bend
Clad in robes
The Irish monk
Lad from Cape Cod
On China mountain
Master of marshal arts
Clearing a spot
Past the bamboo
Poking up through snow
The deck cleared
Used each day
It’s only weather
Come rain or shine
A hundred punches
Below to dine
Watching him cook
Chef in another life
Fast fried bread
A Chinese pita
Meal followed by tea
Inspiration for our visit
Surely a ritual
Less elaborate than Japanese
But with its protocols
Preparing several kinds
First a cake of white
Most delicate of three
Broken into pieces
A splash of hot water
Matter of seconds
Timed by habit and instinct
Poured to glass
Arresting the brew
Savored in small cups
Ensuing conversation
Rare and subtle
Hardly a cupah
The Brits hearty brew
Cure for just about everything
More the mist of mountains
Fine tuning senses
Chewy macaroons
Clearing the palate
Step up to Red Robe
So named by ancient emperor
Surely mid-range
Stronger more forceful
Again savored and conversed
Discourse an analogy
Complex decisions
How to explain
Stillness and solitude
Hearty laughter of the Abbott
When he passed tests
That day unannounced
Who sat and judged
The acolytes
He the oldest of boys
Earned right to stay
Extending the visa
And so we went
On to the summit
Smoked pu’er
Overwhelming by contrast
To the others
Far stretch from subtle white
Assertive in its cup
What’s served in restaurants
The ubiquitous Chinese tea
Generous samples
Sent home with us
To taste, savor and recall
The rarest of gracious
Humor and hospitality
In the dead of winter
With inner warmth
Watching amaryllis bloom
With thoughts of spring
Next season’s garden
Now sleeping under a
A white blanket