I remember him
sitting in his armchair
rocking slowly back
& forth smoking a cigar.
There’s no such things as
Santa Claus, he said bluntly.
You’ve outgrown it, kid.
That afternoon the snow
fell faster as I played
by myself in the yard.
Grandfather watched me
from his window
as he added up what all
my gifts would cost him.
……………………..
“Luke Baldwin’s Vow” at age 5, 1955