Letter to a Cosmic Santa

Dear Santa of the Cosmos,
We yearn for so much
Here on earth on the darkest days
Our lists grow longer
As the days grow shorter
And we chop down trees
To bring the fragrance
Of the woods into our houses

Some of us want peace
Some of us just want money
Some of us want pills to relieve pain
Some of us want a new president
Some of us want a new country
Some of us want a fresh start
Some of us wish you could bring
Back our loved ones who are gone

Maybe it’s asking too much, Santa
As we tend to be greedy or needy
This time of year, but who else
Can we turn to when so much
Seems to have gone wrong
When nothing short of a miracle
Could put things right, could touch
Hearts frozen or turned to stone

Some of us would welcome you
As we would welcome any stranger
Who comes bearing gifts
Some of us would shoot you down
From the sky as an intruder
And turn you into a trophy
Some of us would make you a saint
Some of us would call you a devil

The truth is that we are most open
Now when we are longing most
For gifts that are beyond our grasp
And feeling our losses the hardest
When we are supposed to be
Full of good cheer and empty
Of ill will and yet we are sad
And so we await your arrival