Cruising the neighborhood in a '66 T-Bird,
Searching for Christmas lights,
Mom and dad up front, young and beautiful,
My big brother and I in the back.
Dad always slowed down
When the decibel count got too high
And I would blur my eyes
To make the lights blend together
Into one glorious explosion of holiday wonder.
I always blurred our Christmas tree too
And once, I saw a vision in the lights.
They became planets in a neon firmament
With Santa Claus riding through them
In a red and gold sleigh.
He looked right at me and smiled.
(I swear to God.)
My eyes are no longer innocent.
My vision is clear now.
My parents are old
And my brother is gone.
The world has been stripped of magic.
But sometimes,
I still blur the lights at Christmas.
There’s only a touch of wonder left
But I always blur the lights
To make sure it's still there
And it's like sucking
The last remnant of sweetness
From dried sugarcane;
Sweetness replaced by nostalgia
For who I was
And my visions
Of what life would be
Before it happened.
Author notes
Just a personal reflection. I tend to celebrate Christmas twice - once in December and once in July. Maybe it's my way of ignoring the California heat. lol
Thanks for reading,
Mark
Written June 30th, 2005
In a list
A contest entry
- Christmas Memories (new or Old) by MoonsShadow.
700 points, ended December 24, 2007, 18 entries
Honorable winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
What did you think
Comments
1 - 29 of 29
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Mark, this I do feel your anticipation, the picture you painted in these words had me smiling,and closing my eyes to hide what was about to happen,wow your child hood must have been fun...lol
thank you for this entry and goodluck in this contest...MM
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Very stirring telling about a childhood memory of going around town looking at all of the different assortments of christmasdlights on poeples houses. I liek this poem very much showing that you even show the strange things that happened.
God Bless,
Russ -
This is a very beautiful. I really liked it. It's been so long since my eyes were innocent and I saw beauty in the lights. I miss my childhood now. Great poem though. Keep writing and I'll keep reading.
Love,
Sharon -
What a beautiful memory your brought back to life with this poem. The innocence of a child remembering christmas past, paired off with the reality of an adult and all the changes that have occured that stole some of the magic, however if the memory is still alive the magic of that wonderful time is still alive also. Great write, and a wonderful look back.
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I really enjoyed the ideas presented in this poem-and you captured everything you had to say so brilliantly! I really enjoyed reading this poem...so much creativity-nothing cliche...and I really liked that. Thank you for entering this-good luck to you in my contest!
Amanda -
This is wonderful! I love Christmas lights and Christmas trees and my folks would drive us around town to look at them too. My brother and I used to lay on our backs under our tree because looking at it from that view made it seem like our own little Christmas tree world. It's even something he passed along to his three sons...LOL. Great write and best of luck in the contest!
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I love Christmas , so anytime of the year would suit me.This is a beautiful poem showing the happy side of childhood, and the sadness of time changing things.But who would trade the memmories for all the wealth in the world.An excellent piece. Good luck in the contest
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Excellent!
I got chills when I read this, Mark. Very nicely done! Comparing today to yesterdays always has a profound effect on me..sometimes it's very sad to think of how wonderful life was when we were young and starry-eyed. Your poem expresses that feeling so well..I'm glad you can still recapture some of the magic despite life's inevitable tragedies.
Love,
♥ Maureen
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the memories in this are bittersweet,but you are blessed to have them.this read so eloquently and it was like drinking hot chocolate with an old friends.well i hope you have a happy july christmas and when the lights are up in december,as you blur the lights,know that the goodness of you is not a vision.
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My parents and a few other families, for kicks and giggles, celebrating Christmas in July when we were very young. It was an unexpected bonus each summer - as we thought every year they'd forget or imagine we'd outgrown the idea. Still, we clung thick to the idea and tried to do the same with Santa Claus. There always was such magic in such things...
Great voice and structure in this. The verses walk us easily through a bit of the past, images of the ride in a now very classic car, and the end result of those times when a person wonders how to capture the smallest part of that again.
If only we were able to bottle such things.
Kim -
Aw...once again you have captured the innocence and wonder of childhood so eloquently, Mark. I personally love christmas the best of all the holidays, even though my memories aren't that great, I have created my own traditions now that are very meaningful to me. Thank you for reminding me again of how much wonderment there really is in life if you would only open yourself up to it. suzy
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Oh, how often have we felt the pains of growing up and losing that faith and belief in magic! Great write. It left me considering my childhood... and it was a really sweet poem. Awesome job.
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this is a wonderful piece on the innocence, imagination and beauty of childhood. everything is full of life and so colourful then...but as u get older and that bubble bursts things look bleaker and yes- u take every chance you get to relive those moments. good job
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Good
I liked this. A very poignant meditation.Bbut: shouldn't it be "my brother and me" in stanza 1, to fit the tone better, even if it's not grammatical? The best advice I ever got: be wary of adverbs (and adjectives, and too many words generally). I'd have 'glory' for 'glorious explosion' in stanza 2; just 'stripped' in stanza 4; cut 'of sweetness' in the last. Also, there's something odd about 'sometimes' and 'always' in the last stanza. I have no such happy memories of Christmas, and this made me wish I had some. -
I liked this Rick and I could relate to the changes in life, my sister is gone now too. We also did this every year with our children at Christmas. Good idea, maybe I should do that, even Minnesota is miserable with summer heat.
Red -
Yay!! I celebrate it in the summer too!! Otherwise, it seems like forever until it comes!! (And yes, Houston heat is unbearable in the summer...fall and spring too...lol)
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I rather enjoyed reading and thinking about Christmas today. Most likely, if I had read this poem in December I would have been so sick of Christmas stuff that I wouldn't have given it the attention and praise that it deserves. Thank you for this honest and very well penned tribute to Christmas and the past. Peace.
Gwyn -
Touching
There was a deep pain flowing through this poem of remembered Christmas past.. How often do we think back to happier times and wonder what ever happened and why? They say there is a reason for everything..that our lives are preordained..who are we to question what has been schooled into our subconscious since birth..but question we will until satisfied.As for Christmas..may the lights never dim
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'Of course, the time is innocent, and so are we for wanting to enjoy our lives, but the heart and mind have never been much for negotiation.'
Ohhhh, my Friend...I was going to paste & copy a portion of your wonderful poem...but this part of your reply struck me deeply...Sweetheart, you are a Good Man...a Great Poet...& an even better Human Being...your Heart is huge...your humor intact...your Soul still shines...& your words touch people's lives & make a big difference...I understand about loss & holidays; I haven't many left unscathed myself...Ummm... Thanksgiving still works...even my birthday is less a Time for Joy & more one for reflection on loss now...still...we would not know the pain of losing had we not first had the wonder of gain, Mark...once loved, never really lost...just out of our line of vision, is all...One day, our Hearts & Minds won't have to negotiate terms, my Friend...they will be made whole again...Love ya, Wanderin' Man...Great poem...your words move mountains, my Friend... 
Wanda
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hey graet poem
and sounds like you have many memories about Christmas.
I am sorry about your losses
beautiful lovely
and every other gorgeous word in the ditionary
rebeccalynn 1992 -
HO HO HO, Well Done!
Christmas in July. Now, that's cool. Especially on a hot day like today is--thanks for the refreshment in your words! Brings back memories of my own Christmases...thanks. And, Merry Christmas!
-Karla.
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Thanks! Glad you liked it. Sorry you don't enjoy Christmas. I know how bad memories can ruin a holiday. My mother's stepfather fell in the Belfast shipyards on Halloween night and died from his injuries a week or so later. She has hated Halloween ever since, almost 60 years later. I think a large part of it is feeling guilty for enjoying ourselves at a time that reminds us of a sad event. Of course, the time is innocent, and so are we for wanting to enjoy our lives, but the heart and mind have never been much for negotiation.
Thanks again,
Mark -
wow. this is amazing. great poem, it was so touching. i was never big on christmas and i still really don't like it to this day, too many bad memories. but, this seems so touching. thanks for sharing.
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If you believe in Santa Claus, then the world IS magic! I like this poem very much, Mark. Your eyes may see the less magical things of the world now, but there are still children nd there is still love, and there are miracles untold everyday. You honor your family. There are great hearts to be shared. Yours is one of them. To me, that is magic, because not eveyone has the vision to remember the good things.
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This was surprising. It was a smart move not making this narrative verse as it possibly could have detracted from the emotional core of this excellent piece. But the real emotion of this piece is what’s not said, what you haven’t stated overtly is how the ache in one’s heart never leaves for those you have loved and lost.
David
Edited on Jun 30, 6:12 p.m. because 'an attack of lexdyxia'. -
Hi Mindy,
I like the colored ones better, too.
I hope all is well with you. Thanks for visiting.
Mark xo -
GirlNextDoor,
It wasn't supposed to be funny. lol But it's okay - nobody takes me seriously. haha I'm glad you enjoyed this. I hope things cool down in Puerto Rico!
Thanks,
Mark -
thats funny..I didn't really think anyone else blurred christmas lights like I did. to make them big, beautiful, just a mash of Christmas lights everywhere. thats why I'll always love colored lights more then plain
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Jajajaja well i understand u , i live in puerto rico were is summer all year long too and it sucks. this was very interesting, didn't saw the funny but the melancholy i did saw it!! beautifull write !!
lots of hugs and kisses GND
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