Poetry Friday: Christmas Magic

When Laura was a wee babe, I discovered at our Goodwill shop the charming Random House Pictureback holiday anthology, Diane Goode's Christmas Magic: Poems and Carols. It was published in 1992 and is probably out of print but worth tracking down, especially because Diane Goode is the Diane Goode who did such a marvelous job of illustrating When I Was Young in the Mountains by Cynthia Rylant, and other delicacies. Ms. Goode also has excellent taste in children's Christmas poetry. Both of these poems can be found in Magic:

In the Week When Christmas Comes
by Eleanor Farjeon

This is the week when Christmas comes.

Let every pudding burst with plums,
And every tree bear dolls and drums,
In the week when Christmas comes.

Let every hall have boughs of green,
With berries glowing in between,
In the week when Christmas comes.

Let every doorstep have a song
Sounding the dark street along,
In the week when Christmas comes.

Let every steeple ring a bell
With a joyful tale to tell,
In the week when Christmas comes.

Let every night put forth a star
To show us where the heavens are,
In the week when Christmas comes.

Let every stable have a lamb,
Sleeping warm beside its dam,
In the week when Christmas comes.

This is the week when Christmas comes.


Under the Mistletoe
by Countee Cullen

I did not know she'd take it so,
Or else I'd never dared:
Although the bliss was worth the blow,
I did not know she'd take it so.
She stood beneath the mistletoe
So long I thought she cared;
I did not know she'd take it so,
Or else I'd never dared.

Merry Christmas to all from Farm School!

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Liz B. at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy has some holiday lyrics and the Christmas weekend round-up. Thanks, Liz, and have yourself a Merry Little Christmas, too!