Before the Ice Is in the Pools

Before the Ice Is in the Pools - meaning Summary

Expectation Before Winter Comes

The poem expresses a sense of eager anticipation for an unexpected joy that will arrive before winter fully sets in. Using seasonal markers and domestic images, the speaker contrasts what is passing now—summer touches, a bridge, a frock—with a promised "wonder upon wonder." The tone blends hopeful expectancy with intimate questioning: will memory, objects, or absent voices respond when the wonder comes? The poem focuses on the emotional readiness for a transformative event rather than explaining its cause, leaving the nature of the reward deliberately ambiguous.