Three seasonal poems at Christmas time from three Tipperary poets

THE COUNTDOWN

- by Barry Williams

As the excitement begins to mount,
The calendar is in the final count,
The days are going fast,
In amidst this icy blast,

The shopping list is done and dusted,
That makes the waistline busted,
Get all that Christmas flavour,
It’s a precious time to savour,

It’ll be no more work for a while,
Easy is the ready smile,
Over this festive season,
You don’t have to look for a reason,

To be in that Christmas spirit,
A particular time of notable merit,
Have you been good all year,
Joy takes charge and quell the fear,

Naughty or nice,
Ice and a slice,
Every home is lit up to celebrate,
Festive tones to create,

The old songs are blaring loud,
Arm in arm and sing them loud,
Artificial or real,
We’ve got that Christmas tree feel,

Laugh, love, pray,
Our Saviour born on this day,
It’s about being together,
Flocking home like the birds of the feather,

Home to roost for the time being, As the New Year we are foreseeing,
We’ll keep the festive feeling going, Our Humanity is now glowing.
Happy Christmas.

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SHEPHERDS

- by Frances Long O'Connor

Starlight angles into dark stable
As shepherds pause on its threshold,
Their arms cradling white lamb gifts,
Their eyes seeking the fabled child.
So far have they come down harsh hills
To follow that angel’s strange words,
And now they stand, silent, wordless,
Listening, beholding, still, stilled,
Lost in wonder at what they see.
An infant nestles in ruffled straw,
Its mother croons, rocks the manger:
Knowing now those shepherds kneel
And time pivots to timelessness.

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AT CHRISTMAS

- by Tom Ryan, Rahealty

We shall not, in drawing up to the red- coaled fire
In a profusion of spirits in the hollied room,
Your presence dishonour with forgetfulness,
But rather shall we in music and wine,
And in the memory of another place and happy time,
Toast you, our absent ones.

Nor as the carols reach to the Christmas stars
In praise of the glorious grandeur of the world,
Nor as children's voices herald a new awakening
Shall we forget the warmth
Of a time of togetherness,
But in a quiet prayer, pure as snow crystals,
Give thanks for what you were to our hearts,
For what you’ll ever be
Unto the last Yuletide.

So, in a good spirit,
Glad for the plenty and the peace,
Joyous for our family and our friends,
With all the people of the earth,
And in our merriment and mirth,
We do remember you, our dear and absent ones.