The Other-side of December

 

 
Where do I begin
When the gratitude goes to war with heartache
For perspectives of beauty and loss

When grief is a boasting illusion
As I ponder life and death from manger to the cross

Parallel realities out of sync
Calibrate hope to overshadow the pain

Will the sunshine break these clouds
That intrude inside my mind
And drown my meditations as I reflect upon the rain

From sleet to snow these ice tears shed like white ash from the sky
Remembering God knows what it’s like to watch a loved one die

Hanging in the balance
A call beckons for redemption
From birth unto a final breath
Embodied in this child
The poetry of love and death

God breathed
The Spirit dwelt within this word made flesh
Is there beauty left in this world wherein we live and make a mess

Pulled out from the throes of the curse
Sins culprit to bloodshed
We fight and still you bless
Undone by the thought of grace
As my life learns to confess

Heaven laid down
Wherein light is acquainted with the shadow of such grief
Love to repeal all sorrow and offer sweet relief

Branches come full circle to the Vine
Entwined
We weave our heartstrings
As the decor of a Christmas reef

What is the end but the beginning
Reap once again the harvest of the hope of true belief

In the coo of the Saviors life
This baby born to reconcile all to a single legacy
Where I lose myself in the presence
Is where I find my destiny

Broken for holiday heartache
I choose joy in bittersweet
When heavy handed on the bitter we are tempted to become
As our scars make utterance of defeat

Liberate my mind from the weight of last farewells
As Christmas morn finds us reborn into the life we greet

Let truth reshape perspective and silence all deceit
As we make our way another year towards home for Christmas down another city street

Hearts blistered by the bite of winter as we tread with callous feet
Even in the cold I am warmed by the fire of Your Spirit’s convection and heat

Back to the true meaning
My eyes drawn up to remember
Spring is but a season away on the other side of December…