Escalation

if I lay still enough

long enough

on the hard-packed snow, on the frozen mud and ice

will my body warm up the ground enough

to trick the tiny seeds

into thinking that it’s spring?

if we lie here together

on the same patch of earth

will our combined heat

wake crocuses, make snowdrops unfurl

shake Christmas roses awake

convinced that it’s spring?

if you make love to me, here, in the snow

will our bodies melt

enough of this tundra

to make tulips and daffodils race up

through the mud

open bright crowns to herald

an early arrival of spring?