The spirit of Christmas descends with a whisper

Unnoticed by shoppers and revellers

To sprinkle a little of its magic dust

Which settles into the spaces left between

Food piled in kitchens; parcels tucked under trees

Deflated decorations; precious hopes and dreams

 

On Christmas Eve children in pyjamas, wait longingly

Peering through bedroom windows

Hoping to glimpse Santa and hear sleigh bells

Ringing in a day of filled stockings and pillow cases

While world-weary parents wish for rest and peace

And perhaps the chance to once again

Know the real magic of Christmas

 

As festive days unfurl, during rare quiet moments

Parents and Grandparents can sometimes

Feel the years softly roll away and revisit

Christmas Days of long ago, places and people

Once much loved, now remembered with love

 

Memories and images grow clear, those times

Are seen and enjoyed again

Such moments of nostalgia last but a short while

We return again to the busyness of each day

While granting ourselves time

To occasionally remember, what came before