"CHILDHOOD CHRISTMAS" by Patricia Neely-Dorsey

CHILDHOOD CHRISTMAS

by Patricia Neely-Dorsey

Christmastime at our house

Was such a joyous thing;

There was much anticipation

Of what the day would bring

For many months prior,

The list making would begin;

There were so many things I wanted,

On pure memory I couldn't depend.

I carried handy 'round with me

A trusty little list.

There was not one single thing,

I wanted my parents to miss.

And every year, without a doubt,

I couldn't ask for any better,

For I 'd get everything on my list,

Down to the very letter.

The night before, my brother and I,

Would always try our best;

To catch ole Santa in his tracks,

So we'd get little rest.

We'd try to keep ourselves alert,

With a flashlight by our side;

But, every year ole St. Nick

Would cleverly by us slide.

We must have fallen fast asleep,

Before the morning's light;

Because our toys appeared miraculously,

Sometime through the night.

In our den, the floor was covered,

With toys of every kind;

The sheer volume of them all,

Would surely blow your mind.

We'd jump around from here to there,

And squeal with pure delight;

We couldn't have concealed our excitement,

If we tried with all our might.

Later on in the day,

The relatives would pour in;

For the traditional Christmas dinner,

With us and all our kin.

We'd have such an array of food,

Usually, specialties of the South;

One year, we even had a whole roasted pig,

With an apple in his mouth.

We'd exchange gifts and laughter,

And each other's company enjoy ;

The men would often help assemble,

Some child's complicated toy.

Our festivities usually lasted,

Way into the night;

And after all was said and done,

We felt that everything went just right.

You can find this poem and many other beautiful poems by Patricia Neely-Dorsey in "Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia: A Life in Poems." Patricia has a second book of poetry, "My Magnolia Memories and Musings" that you can find on amazon.com. Both books make an ideal Christmas gift for your favorite poetry lover. You can also visit http://www.patricianeelydorsey.webs.com/ to learn more about the author.