LAST CHRISTMAS

Me, happy, earlier today. Merry Christmas! The pool was only 9 degrees!!!

Twas the night before Christmas, just one year ago,

I sat plonked on the sofa feeling less than gung-ho.

I said cheese with my family because mamas just do,

Yet the effort of smiling made my blueness more blue.

My joy had gone missing, yet I dug deep within

For some slithers of rejoicing to serve warm to my kin.

Naturally, I felt guilty for being such a sad soul;

Me, with so many great riches; I mean what an asshole!

Worry felled me that evening, I was right on the brink,

So, I fired up my laptop and emailed my shrink.

I spilled my sad beans, my whole sorrowful me,

And held it together until January.

When I finally sat down with that patient young man,

Crying snot-spattered tears on his old grey divan,

He asked me some questions, as I sobbed and hiccupped

Then prescribed some new medicine that bucked me right up.

Those pills made me sleepy, at least for a while,

But whenever I awoke I could muster some smiles.

Week by week I felt better, my head finally cleared,

Other things were still wonky, my intestines still weird.

Then poetry happened, just like that, randomly!

Poems poured out of me, both rhyming and free.

I wrote about frogs, about birds, about poo,

I wrote about Trump, about love, and my youth.

Now a whole year has passed and I’m like my old self,

I’m happy and silly and mentally well!

More than three-hundred poems now have popped from my head,

I even write them at night when I’m lying in bed.

So, if you feel sad, anxious, lost and forlorn,

Please try to get help; know that you’re not alone.

The wires in our brains can get all muddled up

Causing rubbish-filled thoughts to get stuck in our nut.

It’s not right to be feeling like steaming dog-do,

But professional people help us muddle through.

And if someone you know seems particularly depressed

Just be kind and encouraging!

Thank you,

God Bless!