Sleigh Dream

Bundled in a horse-drawn sleigh warm and snug on Thanksgiving Day the children restless, we went on our way as the shedding forest began to sway and the gusts of wind set astray the vestiges of autumn's display that unveiled the cabins along the bay Past weathered barns fraught with snow and over covered bridges would we go through the misty river's chill turning toward the cider mill its churning paddles frozen still past the farmsteads and withered fields the ghosts of bounty that harvest yields caught in a breeze of burning leaves and all the reveries the season weaves We arrived on main street after sundown gliding through the charming town toward the chiming white church steeple past the storefronts curbed with people in the wake of the gingerbread float at the stern of the Pilgrim's boat behind fairy tales and candy lands as the revelers sang with clapping hands to the music of the marching bands From the celebration would we emerge from the flowery, spangled surge to behold a wondrous sight as geese took flight into the night over the sea where moonlight sought to quell the hues that twilight wrought Frosted lamp posts lit our course and into a trot sprang our horse his hooves and harness jingling bells as if to the tunes of sweet noels while from the shops whose cozy glow projected windows on the snow there flashed the goods someone will leave under a tree late Christmas Eve the toys and clothes wrapped in bows and all the gifts that a stocking stows Now past chimney smoke and picket fences nostalgic aspects that stir the senses where old Victorian silhouettes are found and gestures of goodwill abound toward the sound of waves we wound as our lanterns flickered on the ground the atmosphere around us festive while within full and restive or nestled by the fireplace or with their heads bowed in grace folks enjoyed a simple pace while outside others strolled about amid the maize and wreaths throughout absorbed in a twinkling universe of colors snow-clad and diverse To our delight there soon arose a savory ambience for the nose adrift from tables set with care with a redolence that met the air as we hailed the last of passersby and climbed the road into a sky whose stars adorned the snowy limbs to a house on the coast, flowing with hymns