Within a Wintry Wood

Whose home is this that sits alone—
in forest—made of wood and stone?
Perhaps a fire roars within
so I can warm my bones again.
 
 
 No woodsmoke seen while standing here,
as bone-bare branches brush quite near.
Ice bites my cheek, a frosty kiss
on such a frigid night as this.
 
 
I glance behind, the way I’d come.
My body chills—my mind goes numb.
My footprints are no longer there,
wiped out by snow and frigid air.
 
 
Quite unprepared for what’s in store,
I opened wide the heavy door.
A sight, I did not want to see—
his dead-glazed eyes glared back at me.
 
 
Thus, here inside the dark and gloom
within this quiet, empty room.
Sheer horror grabs my mind—it warps,
for all I see...my frozen corpse.