A Christmas Poem

I finally got to start my Christmas shopping last night. Well, that is not entirely true. I got Nick’s gifts last weekend and mailed them on Monday. He received them yesterday. I did not get him anything too important…just some clothes, and a few odds and ends. He is 20 years old so it is not the same as when he was a kid. But last night was the first time I tried to shop for my brothers and sisters as well as my parents. They are all so hard to buy for. Our family does the Secret Santa thing, so officially I only need to buy one gift for my brother, but I am trying to get everyone something. We do the Secret Santa because buying for all the adults and all of the kids is a burden on us. I mean there are so many. But this year, I already know what I am getting for my nieces and nephews. I decided to get them a gift certificate, of sorts. It is a gift certificate that allows them to spend time with their uncle at an event of their choosing. It could be a movie or a car show or anything that they want as long as it is approved by their parents and me. So since their gift is basically a piece of paper, I can get all the rest of my family something. I have many gifts left to buy and only today and tomorrow to do it…so I will be on my way.

Before I go, I wanted to say one other thing on a different, but more important note. Most of you know I was in the Navy. What you may not know is that I actually got out of the military one month before Desert Storm started. I was lucky I didn’t have to go over seas for that conflict. However, I knew friends and fellow sailors who did have to go. This time of year makes me remember all the years I was away from my friends and family for Christmas. I remember how I felt and I know it must be many times worse for our troops who are in harms way on Christmas. Now I personally do not support this current war, but as a veteran, I completely support our troops. I pray that they all come home safe and soon to their families, and that they do not have to spend another holiday season away from their homes. In that spirit, I would like to share a poem that was sent to me that sums up my thoughts for my military brethren. Peace to you all and Happy Holidays.

A Different Christmas Poem

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.
The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.
The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know, Then the
sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.
"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"
For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,
I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."
"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.
No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at 'Pearl on a day in December,"
Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."
My dad stood his watch in the jungles of 'Nam',
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.
I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.
Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue... an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.
I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..
Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."
"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."
"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife and your son."
Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.