#smallstories In Vermont, when the holidays are over and the reality of the 109 days of January sets in, two friends have a winter party.

We guests are to bring skates and, if we wish, food to share, beverages, a dead Christmas tree and a match.

So we skate. And eat. And haul our trees to the field, near the pond, and build a tower. Then we light it. You can imagine what the fire looks like, it's height and firefly sparks; here is what it looks like when you look away from the fire.