The day came wet and cold
the bedclothes seemed a safe retreat
until mid-morning
when the urge to pee
became too strong for even
this most stubborn of
procrastinators

At noon our Dawn arrived
from Richmond
with her pitbull Oakley
and our poodles were
as glad to see their canine friend
as we to welcome in
this lovely daughter

A lazy afternoon
a little houswork
kitchen stuff
some reading
and a facetime conversation
with Dawn's sister
back in West Virginia
laughter like little bells
at both ends
of the line
as sisters traded
family news
warm smiles
and Christmas wishes

For some it marks
a deep felt miracle
but all of us
from Apaches to Zulus
count the years
from that mythic event
the birth in Bethlehem

This year the day brought memories
that stretch back far
as any I can summon
family scenes
grandfather reading
from the Bible
father playing
his accordion
while we sang the old carols
mother heating mulled wine
on the stove and serving
cookies frosted pink and green
a guardian angel set high
on the tree we'd wrapped
with strings of silver
hung with balls of red
and blue and gold
piled presents underneath
my parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents
all of them gone so long ago
it seems a distant dream

And still there's something
beyond words
something ineffable the lights
the songs, the greeting cards
betoken and yet none
can ever quite express

Something the word eternal
struggles to evoke
and still the mystery
is here with us
hidden before our eyes
if we could only open them

It's with us every day
but somehow with the lights
the tree, the caroling
we're able to come closer
now at Christmas