Winter Chills

Winter chills,
But Christmas thrills,
To enjoy the frills,
Embrace the ills,

The ills of modern life,
Cut like a knife,
Be you single,
Or be you with wife,

Inflation and working,
Insecurity always lurking,
As you keep the wolf from the door,
Surely life is for more?,

Escape from the superficial veneer,
Of shallow fashion trends,
And remember that death,
Is always ever near,

Take temporary respite,
To gaze at the sites,
Christmas trees,
Mistletoe and glittering lights,

Presents given freely,
Drinking seems so easy,
What would Santa say,
Seeing you've grown up that way?,

Take the company of friends,
Family fun as winter descends,
Snow smothering the scenes of norm,
Raise your glasses to Christmas morn...!

Author's Note

Let me know your thoughts..? What makes Christmas for you?

Reviews

[Pryde Foltz]

The presents and decorations on Christmas are wonderful but there is a feeling that generally arrives on Christmas Eve ... I guess it is peace ... that feeling I wish we could bottle and gift.

Some tight and expressive verse, Julian. Well-penned:)

[Twilight]

Precisely, so I wanted to portray aspects of this season - which are typically forgotten by the common man (or woman of course).! Peace to you too, Pryde dear. Your appearance, always brightens my page; sigh.! Keep calm, and carry on writing.

[Pryde Foltz]

Thank you and the same:)

[Twilight]

🌹Oh Pryde..sigh.!

[Red Brick Keshner]

For me it would be togetherness, not just of significant people, but others as well; also of thoughts and feelings! Sort of like an in-gathering of conscious awareness and wholeness of being. But it’s much easier said in lights, food, presents and getting together.

[Twilight]

That's a good review, thanks.

[Red Brick Keshner]

You are most welcome 🙏🏻

[Eilis]

Christmas is a difficult time of year for many. And it strikes me that one of our most beloved Christmas stories is Dickens’ A Christmas Carol which is a ghost story and story of redemption and of only being able to feel joy after being able to enter into the suffering of others. But also within that is the idea that without learning joy we are not fully experiencing what it means to be human.

Christmas is a lovely thing because it has traditionally led people to pause or slow down and think of our actions and embrace long held rituals and set aside our own desires to think of how we can bring joy to others. In our minds it becomes a source of comfort and light. Your poem alludes to all these states and reminds us that Christmas is a multifaceted thing. Something that can be briefly transformative and all-consuming. Hopefully a good day for those who choose to celebrate. A time for creating memories and adding depth to those we already hold dear.

[Twilight]

I concur, with most of that detailed and positive review. Indeed, in raw terms; the ghosts of A Christmas Carol were "teaching a lesson" to their reluctant host. On the matter of Christmas itself, it should indeed; being a time for both festive cheer and to unwind (along with the other positives identified). Ironically, it would probably have been far less stressful in some olden times; at Christmas. For example, during decades of your history and mine; when both families themselves and political groupings were less fragmented.? Of course, that's a generalisation in part; but I think that it holds some truth? I appreciate the fact, that yiu have adddd points of your own; in addition to alluding to my thoughts and observations. It's good when you do that.