We’re walking in Christmas cold,
A smoky peace as we breathe out.
Holiday lights slice through the purple air
As the occasional car lumbers by
Interrupting temporary silence.
We don’t hold hands anymore,
I’m not the hero I once was
And you find your heroes now in high school hallways.
Besides, you’re way too old to pretend I am,
Though, of course, I still hope.
But I make sure you walk
On the inside of the sidewalk,
And you don’t seem to mind.
We make our way past landmarks
Of another time,
They wish us Merry Christmas
These museums of our lives.
The former best friend’s house
The tree you hit with your bike
When you broke your elbow.
These things the night ushers past us,
Maybe to remind me how fast it all moves.
But the Christmas cold
Still beckons us forward
Through these artifacts,
Then home again.