Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Christmas Came Early - 1969

Christmas came early
I saw it today
In folded clothes
And things for play

A winter coat
Sans a button of course
Some retired socks
Relics of past city wars

A shiny shirt
What more can I say?
Christmas came early
Then went away

- - - - - - -

Christmas as a youth, even as a child, in the city was an event that was like a double-edged sword. Because I grew up in poverty, Christmas presents were often obtained from welfare agencies who had gathered used toys and games for those less fortunate. A good idea that often fell flat when the gifts didn't work, had missing puzzle pieces or game pieces. One particular Christmas when I was in grade nine saw me get a new wardrobe courtesy of the St. Vincent de Paul Society. The clothes, for a change, were actually decent and included a set of soft suede boots called 'desert boots'. I wore the new clothes with some pride to school as my old clothes were stuck in a different time and era. Unfortunately, one of the students in my large school noticed a shirt I was wearing, a unique one, as being his old shirt that his mom had given to some charity group or other. The echoes of the laughter in the school halls followed me for a long time.

rgl

2 comments:

Roxy's Real Estate News said...

Hi rgl
I love your site!!
it's clearly exceptional.
Good Job

rgl said...

Thanks, Roxy, for the kind words. I will continue to add more poems and commentary in the near future.