Christmas is drawing nearer; if we listen very closely, we can hear the bells jingling on Santa’s sleigh! Like other celebrations and holidays this year, Christmas will be a quieter occasion for many, but that doesn’t mean we can’t embrace the spirit of the season. From twinkling lights and pretty packages to delicious baked goods and cups of cheer to time with family and friends (albeit masked and socially distanced!) to reflection back on this singular year…we hope you’re able to make some happy memories this Christmas. To add a literary dash to your holiday season, Bas Bleu’s editors have collected twelve of our favorite Christmas and New Year’s poems. (To read each poem in full, click on the title or image.)
Look there at the star!
I, among the least,
Will arise and take
A journey to the East.
But what shall I bring
As a present for the King?
What shall I bring to the Manger?
I will bring a song,
A song that I will sing,
In the Manger.
Watch out for my flocks,
Do not let them stray.
I am going on a journey
Far, far away.
But what shall I bring
As a present for the Child?
What shall I bring to the Manger?
I will bring a lamb,
Gentle, meek, and mild,
A lamb for the Child
In the Manger.
I’m just a shepherd boy,
Very poor I am—–
But I know there is
A King in Bethlehem.
What shall I bring
As a present just for Him?
What shall I bring to the Manger?
I will bring my heart
And give my heart to Him.
I will bring my heart
To the Manger. –“Shepherd’s Song at Christmas,” Langston Hughes
At Christmas I no more desire a rose,
Than wish a snow in May’s new-fangled shows;
But like of each thing that in season grows. – from Love’s Labour’s Lost, William Shakespeare
Christmas.
The bell of the eve,
It’s grateful. –Mitsuhashi Takajo
I made myself a snowball
As perfect as could be,
I thought I’d keep it as a pet,
And let it sleep with me.
I made it some pajamas,
And a pillow for its head,
Then last night it ran away,
But first—it wet the bed! —“Snowball,” by Shel Silverstein
What can be said in New Year rhymes,
That’s not been said a thousand times?
The new years come, the old years go,
We know we dream, we dream we know.
We rise up laughing with the light,
We lie down weeping with the night.
We hug the world until it stings,
We curse it then and sigh for wings.
We live, we love, we woo, we wed,
We wreathe our brides, we sheet our dead.
We laugh, we weep, we hope, we fear,
And that’s the burden of the year. —“The Year,” by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
_____________________________________
Don’t want to miss another post from The Bluestocking Salon? Sign up to receive our posts via email! Just scroll down past the comments section and you’ll see a space where you can enter your email address to receive notifications of new posts.
Thank you so very much for sharing these poems. I love and appreciate them all!
You’re welcome!
What a lovely collection of seasonal verses, some so old yet so apt.K
W. H. Auden: from For the Time Being
Thanks, Helen, we’ll check it out!
Thank You for these lovely poems.
Marilyn
You’re welcome, Marilyn.
Maya Angelou’s verse in this year of pandemic and politics made me appreciate
Christmas more than ever before.
Same here, Susan. She always has just the right words.
These poems are exactly what I needed in this dark time. Thank you! I felt happier just reading them.
We’re so glad to hear that, Jane.
What a beautiful selection of poems! I’ve sung Rosetti’s “In the Bleak Midwinter,” many times but reading it here multiplied the beauty. Thank you for a grand selection.
You’re welcome, Jo. Thank you for sharing her poem with the world via music!
A lovely way to begin this morning!
Thank you so much for smoothing the edges of a rough year and for warming the human heart.
The poems are lovely! Thank you so much for bringing their beauty to us, especially this year.
I love Poetry and these poems blessed my heart today and thinking of this past “black” year. Thank you so much! Merry Christmas.
Thank you for the literary treat!
These woke me this morning with a smile! Can you please tell me,finally,
What “auld lang syne” translates to?
Joan
As we understand it, Joan, “auld lang syne” translates literally to “old long since” and means something along the lines of “times gone by.”
Poetry lifts my spirit. Needed more than ever; it has been done.
Thanks so much! A bright spot.
thanks so much, I am a huge Langston Hughes lover. Used to see his Black Nativity every year put on by a Bridgeport CT church. Simply amazing. Merry Christmas to you all,
Thank you for this literary Christmas Cheer!
Thank you so much for these seasonal offerings of poetry. You always have something beautiful that I have never seen before and that delights my soul. Please continue.
Loved,loved poems
Thanks for the wonderful collection of beautiful Christmas poetry‼️Merry Christmas 🌲
My fourth graders loved the Shel Silverstein, “Snowball”. We virtually enjoyed it. Shel always makes them laugh, me too!