Family Christmas Poem by Robert J Meyer

The Christmas when my marriage died and nothing came out right
I’d flown into Nebraska, but Althea missed that flight.
My parents had her gifts around the Christmas tree alight,
But since she was St. Louis bound, it was a silent night.

The year my little brother’s schizoid fantasies did bite
The family photo ended with the threat of a knife fight.
But he had grabbed a butter knife so no blood spilled, no fright,
So handcuffs and the looney bin, it was a silent night.

And then the year my dad felt pain. His face had gone dead white.
He thought his heart was acting up. My mother was a sight.
She sent us to the hospital to see if he was right.
But indigestion was the cause, another silent night.

So Christmas in my family will never come aright
Unless it ends with misery or a cop and big searchlight.
So when I get a Christmas card I never know just quite
What to think or what to feel about that silent night.