What Smile Lines Do To One's Face

Plantar tendons have been treading on

frost bit floors for

far too long.

Caressed by frigid specks

the way morning dew dampens

the crisp, hardened meadows.

I walk toward my lifelong friend whom

I have seen everyday, yet haven't embraced

for what seems like calendars. Everyday,

my friend sends me warmth amidst a global

winter storm that I navigate on a floating device.

Slowly, these ice caps trickle from the sides

wallowing shallow tubs.

Now, I clasp her ardent body against mine;

feel her flaring fingertips on my back, her busy forehead on

my shoulders, and her soothing breath whisk my hair strands

so far back that they mark each unforgiving day past as gone

and I remember what smile lines do

to one's face: it beautifies it.