A man up in years
Hunched over as he
Walked along the street
On this chilly December day
Zipping up his hoodie as
He approached the rotary
On the median stood
Another old man in shabby
Clothes covered with an
Equally shabby Santa Claus suit
Face covered with a
Smiling dog mask
A grocery cart full of
Old clothes and other things
Parked in front of him
He was waving to all the cars
Passing through and shouting
Merry Christmas which went
Unheard by the motorists behind
The closed windows rushing to
Their warm houses with
Bags of presents or maybe on
Their way to the stores to buy more
Still, the man in red
A tad skinny for the
Corpulent St. Nick continued with
The Season greetings
As the walker crossed
The rotary, he stopped and
Spoke to this festive man
Who cheerfully greeted him
They chatted for a few minutes
Until the dog-faced Santa stated
The obvious, ‘I’m homeless’
The old man in the hoodie told
Him he did not have any cash
No problem replied Santa
Then saying, I’ve seen you
before haven’t I?
The old man didn’t think so but
The mask didn’t help so he just
Said, see you later, thinking
He would get some cash and
Bring it to this man when he
Got home
Santa wished him a
Merry Christmas as the man
Stepped onto the sidewalk
It was clear now but the
Forecast called for heavy
Rain and high winds later and
Into tomorrow
He wondered where this Santa
Would be staying
That thought slipped to the
Back of his mind as he walked
The route to his house
Complaining of the heat as
He entered the front door
A few hours later he and his
Wife left to go to the restaurant
To celebrate their granddaughter’s
Birthday, ten years old today
It was an enjoyable evening and
They left with their bellies full
Driving to the granddaughter’s
House for birthday cake
It was dark as they passed the rotary
It had started to rain
The median was empty
The sad Santa had moved on
Perhaps in search of a meal and
Some shelter
Merry Christmas drenched with
Guilt echoed in his head as
His wife sat oblivious to it all