Christmas In My Rearview Mirror

                                                   
               Once again, this Christmas the road beckons
Harkens back long ago when shepherds sought a star
And the promise of new beginnings 
In the birth and sorrowfully brief life of a child

I too am drawn to a bright star in the East
But, content just now, with the serenity and solitude
Of the road...where the faces of strangers
Paint the tapestries of my journey

I shall dwell between the dreams of "soon"
And the rememberances of Christmases past
I shall anticipate the joy of reunion
While seeing yesterday in my rear view window

My fertile mind will summon bright and clarion images
Of the sparkling eyes and joyous laughter of children
On a long ago Christmas morning
When meager gifting was met with happy smiles

Those of us fortunate enough to achieve an age
Of sufficiency, know well
That we have perhaps sixty or seventy of these
seasons of magic
To relish

And now the road beckons me on
Hurry! Hurry!
While wiser spirits beg me tarry
Savor the journey, they caution
Who knows when you'll pass this way again

And so, there is joy in abundance
Anticipation at what awaits me around the next bend
while all the time looking back in that rear view mirror
Revelling in the images of love and laughter of Christmases long ago.