On that (Happiest Busiest Luckiest Loneliest) Time of the Year

Black Friday

Small Business Saturday

Soccer Sunday

Cyber Monday

Giving Tuesday

Weird Al Wed (NPR on replay)

Go Green Thursday

Is it Friday yet?

my email spirals

electronic

response nodes

about to burst

the high energy

always hearty

I simply

crave a bowl

of soup.

Alphabet soup,

please. Perhaps a

crock of beef barley

or a consommé broth.

Turkey chili.

Mushroom medley.

Noodles and spaghetti.

Chicken and stars.

We check our lists

Lists checked

twice. Check

out purveyors.

Purchases nice.

Quests for

the curious.

Gifts for all

even the mice.

My list

is simple. Simply

not. A one-

ingredient recipe.

I’d like to

book a ticket

to Mars.

I hear it’s possible

this time some

(next) year.

A gift like no

other. A one-way

ticket

out of Here.

The distance

between Here

and There

simply fine

print. Print

in twelve-point

ink.

Every day a test

markers

of yards gained

fouls made

shoppers and soldiers trained

we test

we purchase

we market

(unable to rest)

in cardboard

boxes and red bows

we package

rest

Fitbits and Sleep Trackers.

Wristwatches and Ring Watchers.

A perennial quest

For the original.

Succulent blooms. Garden gnomes.

Fried eggs and ham. Canned spam.

Advertisements promising

out-of-the-park plans.

With news and survival

a daily contest

like summer carnival

wheels

and games of chance

wrong season

the soup needs more seasoning

Red tinsel

Silver stars

Green wreaths

Each of us characters

in/on/of a movie reel

With so many hues

all subscribers

owed

dues

it’s most important

to remember

that for many

this is a season

of blue hues

About the Poem

As sales, solicitations, and good-natured occasions proliferate in in-boxes, on cells, and in community halls, I hesitate and take care to remember that amidst the colors of the season, blue hues sometimes predominate.

About the Author

Jen Schneider is an educator who lives, works, and writes in small spaces throughout Pennsylvania.

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