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I do not own anything about The Mentalist. No copyright infringement is intended, and thank you Mr. Heller, for letting me play with your lovely characters.
AN: So it's Christmas Eve and I got to thinking about gifts and one thing led to another. You can call this a poem or a drabble or a very short one shot. Whatever. I'm not into labels – just experimenting. Constructive criticism is welcomed – seriously - I'd love to know if it works for you or not.
(the title is taken from a old Shaker song - the Alison Krauss/Yo Yo Ma version is simply gorgeous) "Tis the gift to be free."
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My father said there was
No such thing as a gift.
A smokescreen to blind a mark
A token assuming and requiring payback
Or an attempt at easing a guilty conscience
(he himself was incapable of guilt – oh the irony)
"No such thing as a gift, Paddy."
Of that he was certain.
When he was drunk he would boast
That his gift to me was the knowledge
That no one could be trusted.
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Angela didn't buy me gifts
She insisted that I bought too much "stuff"
All by myself
Then she gave me Charlotte.
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The truth is, I love giving gifts.
Seeing the recipient's face light up with
Wonder and delight
Sure, I enjoy that I put it there
That I got it right
But my pleasure in their happiness is genuine.
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It's dawn and Teresa is in the shower.
I imagine the rivulets of warm water
Gliding down her silken skin
Over places that yielded to my hands just this morning.
We are running late.
I lay my suit and shirt out on the bed and walk
To the dresser drawer she has allotted me
(I wake here often as not these days)
I pull it open and see
Beside my stack of underwear
Several pairs of socks, neatly ordered.
Black, blue, gray.
I feel that my heart will burst with happiness.
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She steps out of the bathroom
Toweling her hair.
"You can go ahead and shower while I dry my hair."
But I am rooted to the spot, staring into my drawer.
She notices.
"Oh yeah, I picked you up some more socks."
She explains it nonchalantly
As if her gift is hardly worth mentioning.
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My father was wrong about everything.
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AN/PS: Gotta let this one go before I chicken out. I hope everyone has a lovely holiday, whatever you celebrate. Just celebrate!