The Magi come to Halloween

‘Twas the day before All Saints
When all through the ‘burbs
Monsters and goblins
Swarmed the streets and the kerbs

I was wandering the mall
And stopped in surprise
At the atrium vision
– An apparition so wise.

“It’s far too early”
Part of me cried out!
Another part welcomed
And bid me chill-out.

Do the visiting wise men go
With what bumps in the night?
Do Halloween and Christmas
Converse on what’s right?

The shops rub their hands
For both bring in cash –
The saints and the Magi
Seek ponderings less brash.

The gifts for the Child
Speak of great destiny for all
The saints we so cherish
Receive it in thrall.

The veil is so thin
That divides now and those gone
Thin also the wall
‘Tween mammon and yon.

Dennis Ryle – 31 October 2022