The candles glowed, the green trees sparkled,
There were festive red sweaters and smiles on faces,
Carols were sung with reverence and joy,
They read of His birth, how He can down to earth
To show us how to live.
I sang with strong voice and listened with awe,
No unwanted tears, no feelings of loss,
Until my eye glanced just to my right,
My brother-in-law’s arm draped ‘round his wife.
My shoulders were empty, your arms were long gone,
Oh, how I missed you – came welling up loud.
The pain of your loss was taking control.
I let the tears slip, then took a deep breath.
The trees were still glistening, each candle was lit.
We sang “Silent Night,” I thought of Christ’s birth;
How much we’d gained by His coming to earth,
The gift of His life and victory o’er death.
I thought about gains, forgetting the losses,
Our forty-five years of Christmas together,
Your hugs, your grins, your unfailing love,
And the best gift of all – your new life in heaven.
An Ordinary Woman 