the x-mas tree salesman

every happy face, every twinkle in the eye
approaches with or without a child,
bundled up regardless of whether there is snow on the ground
regardless whether it is actually cold outside &
the first thing they ask is how much a tree is.

the question is asked,
regardless if there is a big sign just in front of the mass of
trees standing,
in which said salesman is pacing slowly,
waiting for the next vessel of
holiday cheer
to enter their world---
and because the salesman bites their tongue,
despite whatever it is that they themselves might be feeling,
there is not a lashing out at the
individual,
who, bubbling with excitement ,
probably wouldn’t listen to them anyway,
when they remark that
the price of the trees was posted,
and that said customer passed it just as they came
fleeting in.

sometimes the person who shows up for a tree
has been sent by another,
for you can see the “errand” in their face---
they do not walk with wide glowing eyes,
and often they have no child dragging behind them---
the salesman wonders if in fact,
this person, more than the others,
is on a level more conducive to her/himself.

for the salesman, alas,
cannot join in on the private bliss of every
domestic happy drone who comes tumbling in---
they may even be thinking,
possibly even pondering
all the holiday suicides that pile up around this
time of year,
and it just doesn’t come with a smile.