The Birds are Gone, The Ground is White

The birds are gone, The ground is white,
The winds are wild, They chill and bite; 
The ground is thick with slush and sleet, 
And I barely feel my feet."
It's not the case, though some might wish it so
Who from a window watch the blizzard blow
White riot through their branches vague and stark,
That they keep snug beneath their pelted bark.
They take affliction in until it jells
To crystal ice between their frozen cells ...