Author's Note: This is my first ever free verse poem, and hopefully my last. I don't really like free verse. If this sucks, don't blame me; blame the mean, stubborn muse that made me get up in the middle of the night to jot this down....yeah....

Christmas Lights

by Jareth Valentine

You and I and all of them
Are like a strand of Christmas Lights
Always burning,
Always shining,
Always together.
But some of us break
against the stone fireplace,
And some simply burn out,
Their sparks extinguished,
never again to shine.
New lights replace them,
But they are not the same.
Eventually, none are left
But you and I.
Which will go next?
You or I?
Which of us will leave the other
To shine alone amongst the strangers?
Some of them flicker
With worry for what must come.
For what they cannot control.
But instead I will simply shine
Here at your side
For as long as I can.

The End