Grandpa Gave Me a Gift On Christmas Eve

Twas the night before Christmas and all thru the house My grandpa's fast at work carving a wooden mouse In the spirit of St. Nick he bloomed from his heart And sang holiday cheers and Noel's from the start I tiptoed down the steps to his basement and all Following a trail of music, and grandpa having a ball I hid from his sight and watched tears run down his eyes As he carved each toy mouse to its original size For most of the year, grandpa's an unhappy sport But save for one night of the year his ship came to port And there he was a pantomime Silent Night in cadence As he stood over his lath and drill, his eyes adance Five gift boxes wrapped in gold glitter waited to be filled Each gifted to his grandkids, who surely will be thrilled First, he added a coat of black lacquer, and I did blink As he dressed each eye, nose, and ear in shades of pink I may have been five years old on this Christmas Eve past But watching grandpa come alive, a memory that will last To have seen his silent night awaken was such a lift To see him smile with tears in his eyes was a true gift 11/27/22 The Night Before 3 Poetry Contest Sponsor-Joseph May 1st