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 We drive north to New Orleans this far south Where land and sea both lose themselves in marsh And spring breaks through mild winter’s brittle cold When pansies blaze over the noon-light’s ice. We know, of course, the rare unsparing day When sovereign Arctic blasts sweep south-southeast Freezing the boughs of budding fig and pear As in the fall and summer kindred winds Bring down from mobile thrones of blade and air Our ladybug and monarch butterfly. But these are open winters where the sun Tempers the sleet to rain and makes a dew Of snowflakes on the maiden maple leaf. And even in a January dawn, Awakened by the salt breath of the Gulf, Dutch clover, yellow mustard, and a thin Unbending periwinkle on a stalk Deep-rooted in its terra-cotta pot Spread hues and scents across pale frosted lawns Till once more spring’s green regency has come. Winter into Spring Thibodaux, Louisiana ...

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