They smile at me
from last year’s photo—
their children nestled in the lap
of a large man in a red suit.
His snow-white hair spills
onto his matching beard.
They all sit tall in a gift-laden sleigh
amid a festive scene of plastic pines
frosted with spray-on snow.

In this year’s photo
they might be smiling at me.

They are all in disguise.

Rosa O’Kane

 

Rosa O’Kane is an emerging poet who was born in Northern Ireland. Her poem ‘Hydrography of the Heart’ was a commended entry in Hippocrates Prize in 2014 and republished in Axon journal December 2019. She has been shortlisted for the ACU poetry prize in 2018 and 2019. Her poems have appeared in The Canberra Times, Not Very Quiet online journal, Vine Leaves literary Journal, and The Blue Nib.

© 2021