The Sands of Christmas

Posted By Blackfive

Dan H. sends this poem:

THE SANDS OF CHRISTMAS
By Michael Marks

I had no Christmas spirit when I breathed a weary sigh,
and looked across the table where the bills were piled too high.
The laundry wasn't finished and the car I had to fix,
My stocks were down another point, the Chargers lost by six.

And so with only minutes till my son got home from school
I gave up on the drudgery and grabbed a wooden stool.
The burdens that I carried were about all I could take,
and so I flipped the TV on to catch a little break.

I came upon a desert scene in shades of tan and rust,
No snowflakes hung upon the wind, just clouds of swirling dust.
And where the reindeer should have stood before a laden sleigh,
eight Humvees ran a column right behind an M1A.

A group of boys walked past the tank, not one was past his teens,
Their eyes were hard as polished flint, their faces drawn and lean.
They walked the street in armor with their rifles shouldered tight,
their dearest wish for Christmas, just to have a silent night.

Other soldiers gathered, hunkered down against the wind,
To share a scrap of mail and dreams of going home again.
There wasn't much at all to put their lonely hearts at ease,
They had no Christmas turkey, just a pack of MREs.

They didn't have a garland or a stocking I could see,
They didn't need an ornament--they lacked a Christmas tree.
They didn't have a present even though it was tradition,
the only boxes I could see were labeled "ammunition."

I felt a little tug and found my son now by my side,
He asked me what it was I feared, and why it was I cried.
I swept him up into my arms and held him oh so near
and kissed him on the forehead as I whispered in his ear.

There's nothing wrong my little son, for safe we sleep tonight,
our heroes stand on foreign land to give us all the right,
to worry on the things in life that mean nothing at all,
instead of wondering if we will be the next to fall.

He looked at me as children do and said it's always right,
to thank the ones who help us and perhaps that we should write.
And so we pushed aside the bills and sat to draft a note,
to thank the many far from home, and this is what we wrote:

God bless you all and keep you safe, and speed your way back home.
Remember that we love you so, and that you're not alone.
The gift you give you share with all, a present every day,
You give the gift of liberty and that we can't repay. 

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Comments

[Janette]

Just stopping by to thank you for your site and taking the time to blog. I always find something inspirational here.

Merry Christmas to you and your family!

[LarryConley]

"Merry Christmas to all.. in paticular those who fight the good fight!"

[Harvey]

Thanks for posting that.

[DUTCH]

What a great poem. Thanks for sharing it. I sent it on to our son who is stationed at Camp Cooke (Al Taji), Iraq.

Thanks to those soldiers who help us continue to have a Merry Christmas, year after year. Be safe!

DUTCH

[Ron]

Greetings - Thank you for your blog. This poem is Just Great. I will send it on.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. God Bless our troops and their families. Ron

[justicedone]

What a great poem and great blog.
I copied this to my blog as I have yet to figure out how to post the link, just getting started. I have been lurking here for awhile enjoying the content. This is my first comment. Blackfive is the reason I have started my own blog. Hopefully I can live up to the example.

[Tessie]

I just wanted to say that the poem you posted touched my heart and to say Thanks for sharing it. God bless you and your.

Tessie

[Gene Pool]

Well put my friend and needed at this time. May God bless each and every one of our brave soldiers.

[Margaret]

Great poem. Wrote a similar Christmas letter during peacetime, and thought of it last night. We should all be so greatful. Somehow, I think I'm secretly a female sheepdog, but kind of a little older and very appreciative. LET'S ROLL.

[sid cchran]

Thanks to Mike Marks for writing that and Dan and you for putting it noline. We all needed that!

[Rightwingsparkle]

I had that poem posted on Dec. 22nd. Gee..guess you never visit my blog...*sniff*

[Txwarrior]

Christmas is the perfect time to remember those fine folks overseas, killing for Jesus.

[Michael Marks]

Hey all, I'm the Michael Marks who wrote "Sands of Christmas" - just finished a new Christmas poem for 2005 and thought I'd share it. Hope y'all enjoy it.

Best regards,

Mike

Christmas Wish

“There’s no such thing as Santa,” jeered the group of older boys
“there isn’t any reindeer, any elves or magic toys.”
“Oh yes there is” I cried aloud, my little fists curled tight,
“He’s on his way with loaded sleigh to visit us tonight.”

“I made the most imprtant wish a boy could ever make
and I’ve been good for oh so long, been good for goodness sake.”
And though the tears burned in my eyes, I swore I wouldn’t cry,
I didn’t want to be a man, but promised dad I’d try.

That night was spent, just mom and me, like many nights before;
the house was never quite the same since dad went off to war.
We had our Chistmas dinner and we sang O Holy Night,
We read about that meany Grinch and cheered when he did right.

But sadness showed within Mom’s eyes as she stood by my bed,
and tucked the covers to my chin and kissed me on the head.
“Don’t worry mom,” I whispered “things are gonna be all right.”
“We’re sure to get our Christmas Wish when Santa comes tonight.”

I tried my best to stay awake and listen to the roof,
for telltale ring of jingle bells or clop of reindeer hoof.
But snug and warm it wasn’t long before I gave a yawn,
And would have gone to sleep but for the noise out on the lawn.

Then came the clump of heavy boots across the hardwood floor,
the tread somehow familiar like I’d heard it once before.
As quiet as a mouse I crept, my eyes flew wide to see
the silhouette that stood alone before the Christmas tree.

His frame was lean and fit, he had no belly big and round,
the heavy sack a duffle that he placed upon the ground.
He didn’t wear a stitch of red, the uniform was green,
And not a single jingle bell, just medals could be seen.

And then the strongest arms on earth wrapped ‘round and held me tight,
and I knew then that Santa really rode on Christmas night,
and Christmas Wishes did come true, just like I knew they had,
For Santa came on Christmasn night and brought me home my dad.

Michael Marks
2005

With my fondest wish for every man and woman who serves to keep this nation safe, and the loving families who wait at home for your return. God speed you home safe and sound to our waiting arms.

[Janice]

Michael, lovely words. I intend to share them, of course, with credit being yours. You should be proud of your words. We so often forget and seem so selfish...Thank you for thinking of those who give so much...unconditionally...so many pay a price that many of us could not or would not pay. Thank You seems so inadequate. Proudly supporting our troops is not about the relevance or irrelevance of war...it's about men and women giving unconditionally, so that we can have Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, or the choice not to pursue. God Bless America, God Bless Our Troops and Their Families, and God Bless the Red, White and Blue. Merry Christmas

[Gypsy ~]

I would like to contact Michael Marks, author of Christmas Wish and Sands of Christmas to ask his permission to post his work on my web site, Gypsy.Moved.In, the email I have for him no longer works, if you would be so kind as to forward my email address to him, I would be eternally grateful.

Merry Christmas to All,

Gypsy ~

[Michael Marks]

Hi Gypsy,
It's me, Mike! Feel free to send any mail to poetmike "at" mac.com (written this way to stave off the spam-harvesters - the @ goes in the middle as usual). But by all means feel free to post any of my poems you feel fit, and thanks for helping me share a message of thanks. You can find all of my poems on this subject at the International War Veterans Poetry Archive, http://www.iwvpa.net/marksm Thanks and happy holidays!
Michael