I check the locks on the front door
              and the side door,
make sure the windows are closed
              and the heat dialed down.
I switch off the computer,
              turn off the living room lights.

I let in the cats.

              Reverently, I unplug the Christmas tree,
leaving Christ and the little animals
              in the dark.

The last thing I do
              is step out to the back yard
for a quick look at the Milky Way.

              The stars are halogen-blue.
The constellations, whose names
              I have long since forgotten,
look down anonymously,
              and the whole galaxy
is cartwheeling in silence through the night.

              Everything seems to be ok.