An enchanting Yuletide poem to remind us of the true reason for the season,
written by C.C Wiliford.
Twas the night before Yuletide and all through the glen
Not a creature was stirring, not a fox, not a hen.
A mantle of snow shone brightly that night
As it lay on the ground, reflecting moonlight.
The faeries were nestled all snug in their trees,
Unmindful of flurries and a chilly north breeze.
The elves and the gnomes were down in their burrows,
Sleeping like babes in their soft earthen furrows.
When lo! The earth moved with a thunderous quake,
Causing chairs to fall over and dishes to break.
The Little Folk scrambled to get on their feet
Then raced to the river where they usually meet.
“What happened?” they wondered, they questioned, they probed,
As they shivered in night clothes, some bare-armed, some robed.
“What caused the earth’s shudder? What caused her to shiver?”
They all spoke at once as they stood by the river.
Then what to their wondering eyes should appear
But a shining gold light in the shape of a sphere.
It blinked and it twinkled, it winked like an eye,
Then it flew straight up and was lost in the sky.
Before they could murmur, before they could bustle,
There emerged from the crowd, with a swish and a rustle,
A stately old crone with her hand on a cane,
Resplendent in green with a flowing white mane.
As she passed by them the old crone’s perfume,
Smelling of meadows and flowers abloom,
Made each of the fey folk think of the spring
When the earth wakes from slumber and the birds start to sing.
“My name is Gaia,” the old crone proclaimed
in a voice that at once was both wild and tamed,
“I’ve come to remind you, for you seem to forget,
that Yule is the time of re-birth, and yet…”
“I see no hearth fires, hear no music, no bells,
The air isn’t filled with rich fragrant smells
Of baking and roasting, and simmering stews,
Of cider that’s mulled or other hot brews.”
“There aren’t any children at play in the snow,
Or houses lit up by candles’ glow.
Have you forgotten, my children, the fun
Of celebrating the rebirth of the sun?”
She looked at the fey folk, her eyes going round,
As they shuffled their feet and stared at the ground.
Then she smiled the smile that brings light to the day,
“Come, my children,” she said, “Let’s play.”
They gathered the mistletoe, gathered the holly,
Threw off the drab and drew on the jolly.
They lit a big bonfire, and they danced and they sang.
They brought out the bells and clapped when they rang.
They strung lights on the trees, and bows, oh so merry,
In colors of cranberry, bayberry, cherry.
They built giant snowmen and adorned them with hats,
Then surrounded them with snow birds, and snow cats and bats.
Then just before dawn, at the end of their fest,
Before they went homeward to seek out their rest,
The fey folk they gathered ‘round their favorite oak tree
And welcomed the sun ‘neath the tree’s finery.
They were just reaching home when it suddenly came,
The gold light returned like an arrow-shot flame.
It lit on the tree top where they could see from afar
The golden-like sphere turned into a star.
The old crone just smiled at the beautiful sight,
“Happy Yuletide, my children,” she whispered. “Good night.”
Author: C.C Wiliford
SOURCE: Pagan by Design
http://paganbydesign.blogspot.com/2010/12/twas-night-before-yuletide.html
Yuletide Illustration: http://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/EmilyBalivet
Reblogged this on hocuspocus13 and commented:
jinxx xoxo
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Thanks Jin, love your blog! x
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Thank You🎄
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Someone please publish this!! I would love to read this to my nephew as a bedtime story
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Reblogged this on labyless and commented:
A lovely rendition of a favorite!
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Hi Michele
the northern countries celebrate the day of light.
After Christmas the days grow longer & they look forward to have daylight.
Beautifully said
Thanks
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loved it.
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Beautiful! It makes me want to dance in the snow and I hate the cold!
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Reblogged this on aimerboyz and commented:
A Yuletide for everyone 🙂
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Poem author C.C. Williford
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Thank you! have amended to add it now thanks! x
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I love it when you find arigenel stuff.
I need something like this to read to my class.
I wanted something that talked about the
Celebration of lights
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Oh wow lucky kids to have a teacher like you! So important for them to know the origins. x
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C.C. Williford
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Wonderful…I could see everything as I read each line each word…💙
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The author is CC Wiliford
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Aah wonderful thank you, have amended now to show! thanks!
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Thank you. It’s wonderful! Well worth sharing!
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Wonderful! Btw, IT’S “Lo” with no “w”. :
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Magical & just wonderfully lovely!
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Beautiful 🙂
Thanks for finding this.
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Found this gem of a poem quite by a lucky bit of Twitter housekeeping.
Really excellent. I found it inspiring and well worth the time spent reading it. Thanks 🙏🏼
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Glad you liked it, I was so inspired by it so happy to share the magic! x
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This poem with Emily Balive’s art work would be a fabulous Yule book!!! I would but it in a flash!! Thank you for this post. Blessed Be
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Yes I love her work too! Magical poem reminding us to remember the true reason, too often buried in our modern world! x
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I LOVE this so much! Thank you! This will be a Yuletide tradition at our house from now on!
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Beautiful in the gripes of my heart
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Reblogged this on West Coast Review and commented:
A lovely reflection of the season.
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Beautifully written.
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Such a lovely poem! I’m sharing it! 💖
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😊loved it so special thank you 🎶😉
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I added the author underneath the poem, and have just added it to the top as well in case people have mistakenly thought it was mine, that was not my intention.
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