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Carnes: A Christmas carol for Vail

Richard Carnes
Vail CO, Colorado

Tis’ the actual day of Christmas

And from East Vail to Dot-zero,

Only tourists and the lucky aren’t working



Revealing all others as heroes.

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The kids are euphoric

Running in circles and laughing,

While merchants are worried

About holiday staffing.

The presents are opened

The tree is a mess,

When it’s all back to normal

Is anyone’s guess.

There are much bigger things

For us to find worry,

Like the war in Iraq

And when’s the next snow flurry?

It’s these mixed priorities

With which some are sadly consumed,

But this day in the Rockies

We only care about what’s groomed.

The real world is somewhere

Way beyond our vision,

For today we’re all here

Based on personal decisions.

Yes, we love the mountains

The pines all covered with snow,

And no amount of bad news

Can ruin our holiday glow.

Though some might try

By listening to the media blues,

Feel free to ignore ’em

Have another shot of booze.

For this week is special

And comes but once a year,

It’s the only time to enjoy

My annual Christmas beer…

No, wait a minute,

That’s not what I meant,

This week is unique

Because of a scent.

A smell, a fragrance

Some say an aroma,

That awakes us from

Our early winter coma.

A whiff of sweetness

From a ride in a sleigh,

To a celebration of family

Watching children at play.

It’s the one time of year

We’re all nice to each other,

Sharing food and drink

With politeness we smother.

The snow finally showed

A thick blanket of fluff,

So outside we go

Never seeming to get enough.

It’s the reason we live here

Well, at least the main one,

The options are endless

For us to have fun.

So keep that in mind

While enjoying this Christmas day,

For here in Happy Valley

Blue skies are never gray.

(The preceding poem

Though written by Dick,

Is truly sincere

Hope it didn’t make you sick…)

Richard Carnes of Edwards writes a biweekly column for the Daily. He can be reached at poor@vail.net.


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