Fun memories up putting up that fake plastic Christmas tree use to bring a smile to my face,

Decorating with new ornaments year after year to adorn the lushious branches,

Color coded gifts spawned  out from beneath the tree’s skirt,

But now the tree is so scrawny and just bare bones,

Every week I vacuum up the needles it sheds, sickly and barren,

The once beautiful ornaments now resemble forgotten memories and better times,

As my siblings and I get older, the family gathering around the tree tradition is but a myth,

These last few holidays feel like a ticking clock counting down,

I leave for college in 11 months,

Now 10,

Now 9,

I won’t completely be gone, but getting older is realizing how cherished the memories were before they were forgotten