Advent

Not Good Friday or Holy Saturday

Dark, yes, but no suspense

Pregnant, not sad

No mourning or crying

Just waiting

Tapping my foot to

Feasts and other holy days

Nicholas, Ambrose, Guadalupe

The air is ripe and flushed

As her cheeks must have been

Full of hope and promise

Foretold.

Meanwhile christmas rages and wars

Singing, eating, never fasting

Bumper stickers and atheist apologetics

Electric lights, neon carols

New movies shopping for a token Hanukah

Concerts play cards I need to mail

Gifts and candied altruism canes

Boring, awkward, obligatory parties

Yes, obligatory parties

Nostalgic movies sport Santa hats

School days off initiating children into

Premature death.

Bread bakes, fruit ripens, tea steeps

Car warms up, it’s cold outside

Candles glow, waiting for Emanuel

The tree is bare, not sad

Proper dressing begins naked

The beloved makes room for the lover

Calendar ticks, day by day, lovingly

Expectant, small hands, imaginations

Learning to wait, patience, be still

A little longer, wonder, wander

Pink, REJOICE!

Almost there.