It’s you
Your smiles, your hugs,
Your precious time, your presence
That I wish for this Christmas.
It’s peace
In your heart and mind
In your family
In the world
That I pray for this Christmas.
It’s a shift in your way of thinking
That I ask for this Christmas.
Let’s start celebrating the birth of Christ
sans glitters
sans plastics
sans styrofoams and aluminums.
We burn or throw them away
Poisoning the land, the air, and the waters!
If, like me, you made the mistake of buying
that tall, plastic Christmas tree –
Please recycle it. It will last you a century.
Make it be the last plastic in your house on display.
Let’s start a Christmas
Just you, me, us, and Jesus
The Holy One whose birthday has been
forgotten because we’ve been busy buying
glitters,
plastics, styrofoams, and aluminums
Let’s start a Christmas
You, me, and
Mary, Joseph, and Jesus
With songs of praise
With simple meals
With clothes just enough for comfort.
Let’s start a Christmas
The way it was meant to be…
The presence of family
of prayer and tranquility
and of Simplicity.
This Borrowed Scrap of Time 