Kaleidoscopic world
Blue and white, colors of the night line
the edifice of family, food, and fun,
where one calls rest, another-at her best
Their home, haven, hope
acts to nullify negative tempers
as visible tones of luminescence
bringing joy to all who observe
all the hues of such a time,
after such a moment of sadness at the wheel of a car
a solitary instant when we feel all is hopeless,
then we see the lights.
Many little stars line the edge of a home
surrounding trees and illuminating figures
that embody joy, nativity, and a wondrous time.
Yes, electric resources are used
but nature likely smiles in pain
at humanity's attempt to reproduce
her acclaimed wonders again in their homes:
Trapped in-country by virus and cold,
still one sees the northern lights indoors
rainbows in winter
the fluorescence of flowers after fall
in a row of lucid street displays
In the midst of melancholy,
I advise, take a drive, ride, walk, to and fro,
from street to street, alone or with one you love,
and try not to smile. Improbable.
Look for each household's intent in their wintery decoration
and search deep for their Christmas-sy cheer
Above all, note the patterns
large or small in each picturesque snapshot of joy,
then glimpse the larger frame of hope
expressed in each endeavor of ecstatic celebration
see every smile, every bulb placed with intention
Embrace the panorama that reflects
the light of the heavenly expressed in humanity.
If you find none, so imagine it, visualize it.
Repay the light's shine what it's worth:
a gift of wonder and love and joy
and a sacrifice of
a colorful smile
before the beauty is lost and next years embers
roar in the fire of another wonder-yearn
hopefully, your eyes still obey you then.
©2020 by Ayo Okikiolu.
Context:
December 2020 brought way more Christmas light than I'd ever seen in my life. This poem was inspired by those lights.
