It's Christmas!

Our Pre-Christmas Tree
A weak little sapling
Struggling to grow
Reached past our window
And put on a show.

They lopped it and topped it
To keep it to size
But first every spring
It buds for the prize;

And late in the fall
The leaves still hang on,
Braving windstorm and rain
When its neighbours are gone.

Now in our near-winter
With snow on the hills,
It shines through our window
Like gold leaf on the sills

And on Christmas Day
Though its time may be brief,
We will still likely see
One last green leaf.

Many Greetings from the old man and his wife and our weeping birch as you celebrate Christmas today and the years to come. I took the tree snapshot from our window November 27 last and was just able to see a tinge of green on one of the few leaves still hanging on this Christmas morning. I have been deficient in keeping the Post posted through December and will now wait for the new year to see how long the Old Man's Post can go on. Happy New Year!