Sometimes what has been said once needs to be repeated.   There is a substance to the word that speaks not only to the young but to the ones who care mightily for them.   It is the kind of family gift that will bridge generations and allow the young to try their wings no matter their age.    It is with this in mind that I repeat a poem that brought response from many.  And to my readers who celebrate a holy day(s) or holidays, I wish happiness and the desire to care deeply for life’s lessons. In them are the keys  that will open worlds to view.

A Christmas Gift

I lay the swords
beneath the evergreens,
but you knew that.
I also lay old grievances upon the swords,
for we have outgrown them.
They will be buried
low beneath the branches
so there will be no weapons to carry.

I will not burden my own with my dreams,
for in another world they have taken root.
The pattern of my days
with intensity and desire, shaped them.

There will be new dreams
for the young to fulfill.
No reason anymore for the old
to lay upon the freshly crafted heart
the chafings of their envious spirit.

Life is weighted gold,
so sacredly guard it.
I wish to lay to rest the long held grief
that each new generation
must assume the ancients’ maladies.
If anguish resides,
let us undo what we have done.
We give birth to those we hope
to be the best of who we are.
Children are no one’s property.
Their gift is to find and renew
their own sense of self.
To be given life in any dimension,
is to be hugely gifted.

Come,  lay your swords beneath the evergreens.

photo by John Holmes