The young at heart

I’m too old, he said Love’s a game for the young I’m too set in my ways Who’d have me now?   Maybe once, she said A long time ago But now? What do I have that anyone would want?   They circled in a stately dance Drawing ever nearer They opened doors and drew…

A Shepherd’s Tale

A cold night Winter’s coming And it will soon be time to move indoors But for now, build up the fire Huddle in cloaks Almost hoping for a wolf among the flock Some kind of action To keep warm   Bethlehem’s fires can be seen in the distance Dream for a moment of wealthy homes…

A Christmas Feast

The Christmas feast is ready The table groans with abundance The turkey smells like heaven With lashings of gravy and stuffing Roasted vegetables piled high Plum pudding flames To oohs and ahs of delight Crackers pop, paper hats adorn happy heads Raise your glasses to a merry Christmas   While outside, noses press to the…

All I want for Christmas

We never wrote to Father Christmas It wasn’t the thing to do If I was to write a letter It’s Jesus I’d send it to Lord, restore my health And so restore my life Give me some patience and kindness To weather the world and its strife   Open eyes with which to see Who…

The Gift

Wise men saw a star in the east And went looking for a king A shot in the dark A journey of faith Wise men found a child And knew him for the lord of all But they did not know That their gifts could not match his   His gift was shiny like gold…

Remember at Christmas

It’s hard to take, for those alone All the appropriate feelings Happiness, good cheer, family and friends Smiles make pain scream all the louder So share your Christmas blessings With the bereaved, the sick, the sad Shine a little light in their darkness At the birth of grace Give hope to the hopeless God came…

Flowers

In the empty caverns of an empty soul Something echoes, a sad sound Is it fear that current plans will fail Is it conviction that all plans must fail Immaterial Time to sing a new song Time to fill the empty caverns With music of the heart Time to plant seeds of faith And grow…

Lucidity

On the border between dream and nightmare It could swing either way Take charge, stand your ground Exert your will Wolves become puppies Demons turn to harmless sprites Close the door on the bad and the mad And open the way to a country Where everything shines  

The Circumlocution Office

I need income support Sure, they say And I wait and I wait and Oh, haven’t we done that? We’ll get right on it And I wait and I wait and Oh, it got stuck in the computer All sorted now And I wait and I wait and Haven’t we done that yet? It’ll be…

Home at last

I am a stranger in this place A traveller on a journey home I carry nothing. It wouldn’t do To be burdened with inconsequential things Baggage can be discarded Pride and all folly Are excess on this final flight A new beginning, and I feel a thrill of anticipation A lifelong promise soon to be…