Carnes: A Christmas carol for Vail
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.