Saturday, 22 December 2012

The A to Z of Christmas


I need your help to fill in the next 'poem' with words that remind you of Christmas and the holidays. Please write in the comments box below or tweet me at @aniko_toth1. You can also write a comment on the donation page below when you have donated.


This project is for raising funds for Booth Centre charity over Christmas. Please donate here: https://www.justgiving.com/Aniko-Toth1 or by mobile by texting POEM99 and any amount in £s to 70070.


A          Alcohol, angels

B          Baubles

C          Carols, cheer

D          December

E          Excitement, eggnog

F          Family, friends, food

G         Generosity

H

I

J           Jubilation

K

L          Lights, laughter, love

M          Merry, mistletoe

N          Noel

O

P          Party

Q

R

S        Snowballs (cocktail!)

T

U         Unity

V

W

X

Y         Yuletide, yule log

Z



Thursday, 20 December 2012

Stuart Lyons' Winter Haiku

This is a Haiku by Stuart Lyons, who has kindly allowed me to repost. It sums up how some of us have been feeling this winter!


Back atchoo to kneel. 
From dream of sneezes I wake.
Is that seventeen?


Please donate to the homeless charity Booth Centre here: https://www.justgiving.com/Aniko-Toth1 

Wednesday, 12 December 2012

Ambiguous Christmas (I)


C         Cheery, cold, cacophonous, crowds, chaos, candles, carols


H         Holy, havoc, homeless haven, Hallelujah!, hellish/heavenly



R          Retail nightmare, restful, road works, reindeer, riotous laughter



I           Icy, industry, insipid



S          Stressful, strident, sad



T          Trite, trepidatious, tiring



M         Magi, Mass, mixed feelings, markets, mulled wine



A         Angelic, ancient, alluring, Advent



S          Sweet, solemn, saviour



Monday, 10 December 2012

A trio of silly limericks



There once was an old man of Blither
Who carried a box hither-thither.
One day, when it rained,
His back, it was pained,
So he left the box I don’t know whither.

There was a young woman from Hulme
Whose roses went into a bloom.
When the frost, it did bite
All the roses that night,
The lady then grew a legume!

There once was a woman from Burton
Who left the house dressed in a curtain.
As she ambled through town
With the drapes hanging down,
She had never looked half so uncertain.


While these are not necessarily seasonal/Christmassy poems, they are still original! Please consider donating to Manchester Homeless charity: The Booth Centre here:

Thursday, 6 December 2012

Ode to a Joyful Christmas

Inspired by the Wassail Song



Twinkling lights,
Glitter and gold,
Won’t you please
Come out of the cold!

Come in from the cold,
And sit yourself down;
Drink ye of mead
And sing in the round!

Jig by the fire,
O dance long and bold!
Join in the fun
And laugh, young and old.

Riotous joy:
Don’t let it forsake you!
Drink and be glad;
O let it o’ertake you!

Solemn the eve,
Yet merry the night
When children will see
The angels in flight.

Bitter and beer
And mead and the wine,
Feasting on pheasant
And pork so divine!

A fabulous feast
That always awaits
To share and partake in
With family and mates.

When Christmas is o’er
You’ll be glad of your bed,
Of warm, feather pillows
Where to lay your spent head.

So think of the homeless,
The lonely, alone,
And help them to find
A haven that’s warm.

A haven that’s warm
And a belly not bare.
Together we’ll sing
Of the bounty we shared!

O Christmas, O Christmas,
You wonderful time!
We relish the day
When we’ll hear your bells chime!


 

Wednesday, 5 December 2012

Christmas in LA

Sunny, crispy, craggy
Rainy, wet,
Manchester.

Sunny, rainy, overcast
15 Celsius, scarves and coats
Shivering
Los Angeles folks, used to the sun.

Running on the beach, rollerblading
Yoga mats out, Santa Monica
Nights out - even in winter only a light coat.
Blackness where the lights end and
Ocean begins.

Tuesday, 4 December 2012

Warm Warm Warm: Holiday Poem

Warm warm warm
Colours scents form
Turkey mulled wine hugs and laughter
Fireplace toasting toes and
Carrying away misty breath and frosted beards.

Cacophonous kids clamour for trinkets
Cream is poured o'er puddings hot and sickly sweet
Best washed down with heady whisky
A Christmas treat.

Velvet crimson drapes tied with
Golden tinsel, intertwined.
Bold as brass
'Messiah' blasts,
Then carols follow wine.

Crushing crinkly crispy white crystals
Woollen clothes and heavy boots
Pine scents waft, we enter in
Another fire and drink
To gather round.

Warmth and hugs and cherished times
Memories of childhood innocence
A feeling of security remembered
When everything was always alright
And the only thing worrying us
Was whether the Christmas bike
Was blue or red.


Donate to my poetry fundraiser for Booth Street here