Presents

Dear Santa,

What I want most for Christmas this year
is Grandpa,
but I know you can’t bring him back.

Grandpa found gifts everywhere.
This year I want some presents we could have shared.
Plus a Super-Deluxe Space Robot, please.

I want my nose to smell the gift
of freshly cut logs,
of the air on rainy days,
of cookies baking in the oven.

I want my ears to hear the gift
of a swing creaking in the breeze,
of my dad humming while he makes lasagne,
of the silence of a heavy snowfall.

I want my eyes to see the gift
of the first robin on the lawn in the spring,
of a caterpillar’s slow progress up a branch,
of the moon lighting a path across the lake.

I want my heart to feel the gift
of a hug at the airport,
of the secrets that best friends share,
of my little sister’s face when we talk about you…

and of a big smile when I unwrap my Super-Deluxe Space Robot.