CHRISTMAS POEMS is a collection of 24 sonnets celebrating the Christmas season. These poems were chosen because of the special messages they convey about the Christmas season, and what it means to us. Celebration is a major theme in this book. These poems encourage us to be thankful for what we have, and to be watchful for the joyfully unexpected events that occur in life. They also encourage us to appreciate the many blessings that come forth in unexpected ways.
CHRISTMAS POEMS
By Frances Sydnor TehieAuthorHouse
Copyright © 2012 Frances Sydnor Tehie
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4685-2347-8Contents
Ring Out, Great Bells.......................................1A Star Appears..............................................3Newborn.....................................................5Birthday....................................................7Advent Interlude............................................9The Layette.................................................11When Holly Blows............................................13At Christmas................................................15The Christmas Present.......................................17Dress Rehearsal At Little Flower School.....................19A Plea At Christmas.........................................21The Christmas Winds.........................................23The Celebration Of Lights...................................25Trees On Christmas Night....................................27Gifts.......................................................29Reflections After Christmas.................................31Reverie.....................................................33The Christmas Party.........................................35Silence Counts Alone........................................37Of Christmas Past...........................................39In Anticipation.............................................41The Greening................................................43The First Advent Candle.....................................45A Poem For Christmas........................................47
Chapter One
RING OUT, GREAT BELLS Ring out, great bells around the world,
Ring out this Christmas day
To mark the birth all safe and sound
Of One who came to stay;
One known to men of old, to us,
And surely those to come.
He who once in the manger lay
Now makes the heart His home.
And so, great bells, ring out, ring out!
And as each note's unfurled,
Let us rejoice again to hear
The news borne round the world.
A STAR APPEARS A star appears.
Its dazzling light
Sets skies ablaze
On Christmas night.
A song is sung
Of joy and peace,
And all the listeners
Find release.
A child is born.
And this is He,
With Mary, Joseph.
Come and see.
NEWBORN Winds blow gently
Where He lies;
Sing Him only
Lullabies.
Star shining bright
Above this place,
Never wake
His dreaming face.
All who come
To the stable door,
Be still: He has
Not been here before.
BIRTHDAY We try to think of you
As once you were—
Cradled by Mary,
Held close to her,
Seeming so small for gold
And frankincense and myrrh.
Dreaming, you must have seen
The great star near,
Sensed the rush of wings,
The singing clear,
While in the fields shepherd
And lamb knelt down in fear.
You, fragile, small, dreaming
In Bethlehem,
Would wake up the world
With your I Am:
Maker of star and wing
And song, shepherd and lamb.
ADVENT INTERLUDE When lights upon the tree are glowing,
Night winds outside have ceased their blowing,
And in the silence it is snowing,
Recall awhile with wonder growing
The two toward Bethlehem once going,
Then Mary in the stall bestowing
The Gift mysterious past knowing,
The Light down all the ages flowing.
THE LAYETTE She chose white flannel for a gown,
As soft as her kiss or eiderdown,
And then she measured once again
For a blanket to receive Him in.
The message Gabriel brought rang true,
So she embroidered them in blue—
As blue as a bluebird's wing that flies
Or the color of a newborn's eyes.
The donkey never felt at all
The added weight of things so small;
But Mary dreamed of Him arrayed
In the gown and blanket she had made.
WHEN HOLLY BLOWS When holly blows against the windowpane,
We stop what we are doing—stop and stare—
Remembering Advent's almost here again
And thus this green and crimson on the air.
Leaves etched and shiny, berries shaped just so
Sweep sideways, brushing up and down the glass.
As morning sun intensifies the glow,
Slim branches tremble in the winds that pass.
Soon we shall light the candles one by one.
For every candle lit we'll name a name
Til finally, when Advent season's done,
Each is commemorated by a flame.
Today we are reminded as we see
The flame that burns upon the holly tree.
AT CHRISTMAS The bright star shines again,
Just when we need it most,
When all the hearts of men
Are floundering and lost;
When night is at its darkest,
So dark we cannot see,
Prospects almost the starkest
Of those in memory.
But see the star alight
...
