It's Just Us This Year
Holiday celebrations grow and change as the family grows and changes. Sometimes that's unsettling; sometimes it's an opportunity to reflect on the present and how much we really mean to each other.
That one house that goes nuts with the lights.
It’s Just Us This Year
Plastic limbs on the tree bend at odd angles Glitter sheds from the fancy glass baubles Tinsel draped over the mantle is a bit dusty Most of this old stuff stays in the closet. With the kids hosting Christmas dinner We'll take our potluck and presents to their house Where the grandkids are too excited to sit still while Mothers-in-law carefully dance around our genealogies. Used to be we'd drive around town on Christmas Eve Me, my man and our little girl whose eyes gaped wide At reindeer and inflated Santas swaying in the breeze And that one house that goes nuts with the lights. The laughter and joy matched our décor then Huge tree with every ornament collected over time Hanging on branches too weak to carry the weight Traditions evolved, altered, came and went as we aged. Our parents died, leaving us to step up in line Family parties with tribes of cousins separated Into nuclear bands scattered across the land Soon the card list shortened and spirit waned. This year, though, it's just the two of us Content with our elder status and success Achy joints are slowing us down but as long As I can reach the top branch and spread The skirt around the base of the tree And if I can carry boxes from the garage We'll have a few decorations here and there And drive around town this Christmas Eve. Rice pudding will taste as sweet as ever Flirtations across our Holiday Eve table Will be more than enough. We'll not be short-changed, even though it's just us.
The poem is as sweet and tangy as a piece of mince pie.