1 December





the christmas tree stand was bordered by those big old fashioned lights

strung up charlie brown style

the road into the village led past that stand

it curved up the hill past the old graveyard where the 

town's veterans from crisis's long past lay sleeping the deep sleep

a man selling trees in a dark and damp sweatshirt

hunkered next to a crackling fire to keep warm

in the rainy dark night
the smell of the sea and the trees crisp in the air


 the plight of us all depends upon some insight gained 

at a dimly lit christmas tree stand 

that you pass on the way home from work each night

hands steady on the wheel

eyes staring straight at the road ahead of you

you know there are those with issues larger than yours

and that is something to be thankful for

so you force yourself to look at the tiny lights 

twinkling in your rear view mirror

and promise that the foggy gloom you ride through 

will not 

trounce what little joy you have been able to dig up

swear it will be better next year


word






this is not auto-biographical 
i am annoyingly cheerful and optimistic
and even more so at christmas time


Comments

  1. Brian Miller1 December 2013 at 18:00

    what an intriguing line...the plight of us all found there at that little christmas tree stand...and yes there is always next year...the next day...always hope for a better tomorrow....

    ReplyDelete
  2. The Purple Assassin.1 December 2013 at 22:54

    Beautiful post.
    :)
    Tomorrows do exist.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Karen @ Beatrice Euphemie2 December 2013 at 00:05

    I feel like I have lived those words a few times or more. Lovely and intriquing. xo Karen

    ReplyDelete
  4. Pondside2 December 2013 at 00:13

    Thank goodness for that!
    A lovely piece of writing, though.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Old Egg2 December 2013 at 00:54

    Well I suppose that writing a 'what if' poem is a great way to appreciate others' situation. You were very successful in doing so. I wanted the last word "word" to be "world" as though you were bargaining with it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. aspiritofsimplicity2 December 2013 at 05:21

      I thought of "world" as well and it kept coming up...but one must work with what one is given

      Delete
  6. Lynn2 December 2013 at 03:25

    I like your disclaimer, beautiful photo and at 64 'trounce' is a new word to me, imagine!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Jae Rose2 December 2013 at 05:46

    Who can not be cheerful when thinking of Charlie Brown's Christmas..

    ReplyDelete
  8. Unknown2 December 2013 at 10:11

    Had to smile at the Charlie Brown reference. So many happy memories of watching Charlie Brown specials!

    ReplyDelete
  9. diane 2 December 2013 at 16:26

    Lovely post .... you have a way with words.
    diane @ aug's blog

    ReplyDelete
  10. kaykuala3 December 2013 at 19:34

    and promise that the foggy gloom you ride through
    will not trounce what little joy you have been able to dig up
    swear it will be better next year

    Yes we've been through lots this year. Hopefully it'll be great next year. Wonderful write!

    Hank

    ReplyDelete
  11. kchripczuk3 December 2013 at 19:47

    I like the image you painted with words and also your graphic - is it a photo? Visiting from the pub.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Mary3 December 2013 at 22:21

    You have really written a well-crafted scene here.... I am glad that within this scene there is at least a little joy, and hope that the ending comes to pass...that it will be better the next year.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous3 December 2013 at 23:06

    sad... until that little 'notice' you placed after the write :) - but well-observed ~

    ReplyDelete
  14. brudberg4 December 2013 at 01:01

    Oh the hope for a better future.. Love that end of the bleakness of today

    ReplyDelete
  15. Lady In Read4 December 2013 at 12:25

    love the poem and also the note at the end...
    cheer is always good..

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous4 December 2013 at 12:46

    what we promise to ourselves vs what we do... never more evident than at Christmas.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Audrey Howitt aka Divalounger4 December 2013 at 16:40

    There was much sense of untold story here for me--and I love that in a piece--really well penned!

    ReplyDelete
  18. humbird4 December 2013 at 17:41

    You have your special way to touch the hearts...thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  19. The Sentinel4 December 2013 at 19:36

    You see deeply into the soul of place. And how it changes us to tread there. A rare skill.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Joseph Hesch4 December 2013 at 20:19

    Felt I was riding along with you not only on the front seat, but also within your mind. Nicely done,

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Deep peace of the running wave to you.
Deep peace of the flowing air to you.
Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.
Deep peace of the shining stars to you.
Deep peace of the gentle night to you.
Moon and stars pour their healing light on you

Popular posts from this blog

Abby and Hopie time

Image
  ~ ~ ~ Abby and Hopie go to the beach. On Saturday my granddaughter, Abigail, asked if she could come to her Hopie's house all by herself. Of course, I said I would love that! Her older brother, Verne, wanted to go to a friend's house and her younger sister, Natalie, is too young to be away from mum for an overnighter. So...it was me and Abigail for the weekend. She wanted to stay 2 nights! I think she may have been slightly motivated by the need for some alone time and Natalie's late night crying. ~ We cooked homemade cornmeal waffles together for breakfast. When your grandmother is a Montessori teacher you learn to cut your waffles up by yourself. You can see the concentration on her face.  I didn't help at all! Verne's first day of Kindergarten! I drove up in the morning to watch him get on the bus! He loves it! On Monday morning Abigail and I drove back up to her house. My daughter, Hannah, came over with delicious donuts and Bonnie made a breakfast of bacon, s
Read more

First Snow

Image
  Happy birthday to my beautiful daughter, Bonnie. She brings me so much joy. My first snow day of the year! I work at a Montessori school and we are getting our first big snow storm of the year so.... SNOW DAY!!  I made my own hummus last weekend. It was delicious. I added a little bit of turmeric along with the chickpeas, lemon, tahini, and garlic.  I plan on eating a more plant based diet this year. It's only been a week and I'm already feeling better. I did eat two slices of mushroom pizza last night and ended up having heartburn so it will be a good long time before I eat dairy again.  Each month one of our families brings in a bouquet of flowers.  We cut most of the stems off and place them on a tray which we place on the children's table.  We place another tray with a very small pitcher and a few very small bud vases.  The child fills up the pitcher using water from the bathroom sink, brings it back to the table and pours the water in a bud vase of their choosing. Th
Read more

a basket from the farmer's market

Image
  A basket from the farmer's market. When I was a child my mum always had a fruit basket on the kitchen table.  Fruit was always an option if we were hungry at any time during the day. I had the same when my children were young and I noticed while visiting my daughter last week that she had a basket of apples on her table for her children. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree... I tend to put a basket of vegetables on the table as well.  Root veggies mostly since they don't need to be refrigerated.  I think that they look beautiful and why should fruit have all the fun! My favourite part is that everything (even the basket) came from the local farmer's market. It's so important to support local farmers. Healthy food - healthy planet - healthy us nature notes Image-in-ing
Read more