The Garage Sale Christmas

It must have been
our first Christmas without Dad.
I remember very little,
but I now know that times were bad.

I remember putting up
our Christmas decorations with care.
It seemed that Mama
let us put them here and there.

We listened to Burl Ives 
sing Christmas cheer.
Each of us kids put up their own decorations
as they had done every year.

I know that Mama fixed them later
when we didn't see.
I remember bragging to all
that the KIDS had decorated the tree.

We were so young.
I cannot remember worrying about a thing.
I think we just knew
that lot's of toys "Santa" would bring.

Little did we know,
that Mama had plans of her own.
She had shopped at garage sales
or wrapped gifts that she had sewn.

When we woke up
on Christmas Day
we could not believe
all that "Santa" had brought our way!

A little tin doll house, 
for Lynnette and me.
A rhinestone cowboy hat
for little Timothy.

I am not certain
whether we knew or not
that none of our presents
had been store-bought.

I know that years later,
we always had to ask,
"When are we going to have
another Garage Sale Christmas?".

Brian also had "love" Christmases growing up
and every year we tell our kids how grateful we
are for those special times and how grateful our
kids should feel for what they have!