by W Roger Carlisle

On Christmas Eve, my parents and I
always put out cookies and milk for Santa.
My Dad would sprinkle hay and corn outside
to feed the reindeer. I heard hoofbeats on the
roof several times in my hyper excited Christmas trance.
I remember nights of restless dreaming
and never never being disappointed on
Christmas morning. That’s how my parents
loved me into being.

W Roger Carlisle is a 75-year-old, semi-retired physician. He currently volunteers and works in a free medical clinic for patients living in poverty. He grew up in Oklahoma and was a history major in college. He has been writing poetry for 11 years. He is currently on a journey of returning home to better understand himself through poetry. He hopes he is becoming more humble in the process.