[stylist] Poem - "Christmas Card" - Second Draft

[William L Houts]

Hey Jackie and Linda,

Thanks once again for your kind comments.  When I once again took up the 
challenge of writing poetry, after about a dozen years of giving it up, 
my hope was to write material which would be useful to the reader, one 
way or another.  I'm so glad that my current work seems to be doing 
that. That makes for the three R's of poetry, I guess:  rhythm, rhyme 
and readers:  LOL.


Merry Christmas / Happy Hannukkah / Blessed Yuletide.

--Bill






On 12/7/2014 6:27 AM, Lynda Lambert wrote:
> Bill, I love this Christmas Card. And, it reminds me so much of the 
> theology of Emily Dickinson.
> Bill, I would love to see you put together a chapbook!
> Choose a theme and start digging through your poems and putting one 
> together.  I'll be first in line to buy it!
> Your work is intellectual, intelligent, thoughtful, and the wisdom you 
> weave through the passages is something that can never be taught - it 
> has to come from within the person, for the teacher within you.
> Lynda
> Original Message----- From: William L Houts via stylist
> Sent: Friday, December 05, 2014 2:43 PM
> To: Writer's Division Mailing List
> Subject: [stylist] Poem - "Christmas Card" - Second Draft
>
> Hey Wits and Poets:
>
> Something for the season, I suppose.   Comments welcome, as always.
>
>
> --Bill
>
>
> ---
>
> Christmas Card
>
> Neither angels nor elves, their toys
>
> and trumpets announcing Christmas Land fun,
>
> but a still and sober nature:
>
> a buck, a rabbit, a golden-eyed owl
>
> arrested in stances,
>
> this winter commune, as actual
>
> as unmythed frozen earth:
>
> These creatures gazed, with liquid eyes
>
> upon a rare sky'sprophet star.
>
> sofree, this card, of kitsch it slipped
>
> my cynical guard and struck me
>
> crucial hard:I broke open to faith,
>
> and found some years the solace of bread
>
> and wine. I'm lying, mind,a tiny pip;
>
> other starbolts, too, conspired for me to take
>
> the Saint James plunge. I'm unchurched now,
>
> but how I grant that Christmas card
>
> a nod for herding me to Catholic pews:
>
> abandoned now, but cherished, kept.
>
> I do retain a miracle soul: respect
>
> the wisdom of chance and change: I dream,
>
> I play, I bathe, waters of love and rain
>
> my only church,more bloodfelt than the Dove.
>
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>


-- 


"Oh, Sophie!  Whyfore have you eated all de cheeldren?"