Ho-ho-ho! A Day Off (from being our regular sElves) for US All,poem inspired by an older fellow who chooses to live outdoors in Great Barrington MA (but sometimes is threatened with jail for trespassing) from about 2015 By Catherine Palmer Paton

Can't walk on water but can trudge on ice

Seems a bit crazy but is really quite nice,

With a torn signature coat

This soul reminds US-All not to gloat.

Seeing a twinkle in his eye

 We start to wonder why

"Is this his or our choice?"

Do any of us really have a clear voice?

How can we make some noise and 

Ask what's going on for all of us girls and boys?

Is it all about wearing fancy pants, 

Knowing the moves and how to 'really dance'?

What roles can we play in a movie, 

The down-to-earth ones or only ones that are groovy?

 Could we disappear and reappear readily,

 Live on the street year after year?

Could we each be a Magi or Houdini

On a quest between a perfect soul and a meanie?

How Can We Explore  Our Roles for A Day,

Take Off Our Masks and Ask Each Other to Play?

What might we discover about our inner Santa Claus

If we each put down our reins and took time to pause, 

To visit in the shops without buying,

To care about each other without lying,

To ask for help well before dying,

To know being real honest is hard but to keep trying?

As we brave our quest alone and with others, 

Let US-All remember how we can act as a loving family of sisters and brothers.

We can see ourselves in our humble humanity 

When we can tune into ourselves, our world and the divine with clarity.