Tonight's Poet Corner: The Loneliest Ornament

The Loneliest Ornament
by Belinda Roddie

She's too high up
to converse with the tinsel,
and too "lowly"
for the star to interact with.
She was placed on

the middle bough
for one main reason: She's
the most beautiful of all.
But she wishes her glass
didn't reflect the lights

so vividly, and she wants
her pattern to be more muted.
Or perhaps she could become
heavier, so she can be hung
at the bottom of the tree

with the metal Santa Clauses
and the porcelain fictional
characters. They are fascinating
to talk to, and they listen, too,

and as the wrapped gifts convene
for their annual meeting, she'll
eavesdrop on their agenda, wishing
that her layers could be peeled away
to reveal something worthwhile.