Kuura (extract from a Finnish-English dictionary)

by Sara Norja

kuura /ˈku:rɑ/ (n.)

Deepest winter
when the stars align, the conditions combine
for a type of hoar-frost that clings
to each branch —
birch, pine, larch.
My walk to work through the brewer's park
is a fairytale:
each
ice-
particle

reverberates

with the silence of deep woods and the 100-year spell.

Kuura wraps the trees in a veil
for their springwinter wedding
with the returning sun

at a distance you see
in their anticipation
they've grown
spirit leaves

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Sara Norja dreams in two languages and has a predilection for tea. Born in England and currently settled in Helsinki, Finland, she is pursuing a PhD in English linguistics. Her poetry has appeared in publications such as Goblin Fruit, Curio, Strange Horizons, Through the Gate, Plunge Magazine, Niteblade, and Interfictions. She blogs at Such Wanderings.

Photography: adapted from Hoarfrost, by Nomadic Lass.