THE OVERLAP OF WINTER ~ by Pearle M. Olsen

Have you ever seen anguish in blue eyes
That looked upon a mound of frozen lambs
To go without a touch of warm sunshine,
Delayed, as frigid storms howled in surprise?

Oh have you heard the sound of sleet in one
Giant blast that froze to ice upon a flock
Of helpless ewes, and stiffened newborn lambs
Who lost their right to gambol in the sun?

And have you known of courage mustered then
To gather strength, and face up to a task
When thaws arrived ~~and soil could be removed
To shape a hole for a mass grave again?

I learned to watch for blue eyes holding fear
As wind and sleet, and numbing cold could strike
After the allotted months of winter ~~
And into spring when lambing time was here.

Pearl and Bill are the parents of Billye Virginia ( Mrs. E.G.) Jenkins of Caldwell, Idaho, John K. Olsen (Susan) of Provo, Utah; Elizabeth Carlyle (Mrs. Robert P.) Morris of Salt Lake City.  There are sixteen adored grandchildren and two great grandchildren.  (at the time of printing  "Frame the Laced Moments", 1978)