Advent Calendar 4th December.
I
USED TO BE CHRISTMAS
Tracey Scott-Townsend
The
trick was to make it seem effortless
That’s
always the trick, isn’t it?
But
Father Christmas was a tough act to emulate.
I had
to stay up late,
Very
late
Until
they were all asleep
I had
to wait
Until
the night was dark and deep.
I
rang bells,
Distributed
Christmas sounds and tastes and smells.
I
hung stockings by the chimney with care
Filled
them with exactly the same amounts of sweets and toys, a satsuma, an apple and
a pear.
I
half-ate a carrot
And
left Baileys thumbprints everywhere
When
I’d swallowed the contents of the glass
With
my Christmas Eve tears.
I’d
break a mince pie on a plate
And
leave it where it would be seen
To
show Father Christmas really had been.
Scuttling
like the proverbial mouse
I
retrieved hidden packages from all over the house.
Choirboys
carolled
On
the TV
While
I wielded a screwdriver
At a
wooden dolls house
That
would appear magically
On
the hearth the next day.
Sellotape
stuck to my teeth
As I
wrapped the last presents,
Scribbled
their names on the paper,
Stacked
them under the tree
And
wondered if
I
would ever get any sleep.
When
I was certain the house was quiet
I
crept up the stairs a final time,
Shaking
wristband bells on the landing,
My
footfall Father Christmas-like.
I
lugged stuffed pillowcases into their rooms
And
placed them on the ends of their beds,
Minding
their feet.
I
sensed that the lump of little girl
Beneath
the quilt
Was
pretending to be asleep.
Hefting
sacks on my back,
I
tackled the attic ladder
Trying
to avoid the creaky floor at the top
I
used to be Christmas
And
it was sometimes lonely
Keeping
up the pretence of magic
But
the trick was to make it seem effortless
And
then it was truly magic.
****
Did you like Tracey's poem? Want to find out more about her? Read below and check out her links:
Tracey
Scott-Townsend: Bio
Tracey
is the author of The Last Time We Saw Marion, Of His Bones, The Eliza Doll and
Another Rebecca. Her fifth novel, Sea Babies will be released on 1st May 2019.
Her novels have been described as both poetic and painterly. Her first poetry
collection, So Fast was published in January 2018.
Tracey
is also a visual artist. All her work is inspired by the emotions of her own
experiences and perceptions.
Tracey
is the mother of four grown-up children and now spends a lot of time travelling
in a small camper van with husband Phil and their rescue dogs, Pixie and Luna,
gathering her thoughts and writing them down.
Happy Reading!
I really love this idea of the short story advent calendar, such a great initiative girls. Just catching up on reading them all. Love, Jasmine
ReplyDeleteAww, thank you so much Jasmine. Glad you are enjoying it. We are too! :) xx
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