Christmas in Poetry

THE SHEPHERD WHO STAYED

There are in ParadiseSouls neither great nor wise,Yet souls who wear no lessThe crown of faithfulness.My master bade me watch the flock by night;My duty was to stay. I do not knowWhat thing my comrades saw in that great light,I did not heed the words that bade them go,I know not were they maddened or afraid;I only know I stayed.The hillside seemed on fire; I felt the sweepOf wings above my head; I ran to seeIf any danger threatened these my sheep.What though I found them folded quietly,What though my brother wept and plucked my sleeve,They were not mine to leave.Thieves in the wood and wolves upon the hill,My duty was to stay. Strange though it be,I had no thought to hold my mates, no willTo bid them wait and keep the watch with me.I had not heard that summons they obeyed;I only know I stayed.Perchance they will return upon the dawnWith word of Bethlehem and why they went.I only know that watching here alone,I know a strange content.I have not failed that trust upon me laid;I ask no more – I stayed.Theodosia Garrison

Included by permission of the author and of The Century Company.

GOOD KING WENCESLAS

Good King Wenceslas looked outOn the Feast of Stephen,When the snow lay round about,Deep, and crisp, and even.Brightly shone the moon that nightThough the frost was cruel,When a poor man came in sight,Gath’ring winter fuel.“Hither, page, and stand by me,If thou know’st it, telling.Yonder peasant, who is he?Where and what his dwelling?”“Sire, he lives a good league hence,Underneath the mountain;Right against the forest fence,By Saint Agnes’ fountain.”“Bring me flesh, and bring me wine,Bring me pine-logs hither;Thou and I shall see him dine,When we bear them thither.”Page and monarch, forth they went,Forth they went together;Through the rude wind’s wild lamentAnd the bitter weather.“Sire, the night is darker now,And the wind blows stronger;Fails my heart, I know not how,I can go no longer.”“Mark my footsteps, good my page;Tread thou in them boldly:Thou shalt find the winter rageFreeze thy blood less coldly.”In his master’s steps he trod,Where the snow lay dinted;Heat was in the very sodWhere the saint has printed.Therefore, Christian men, be sure,Wealth or rank possessing,Ye who now will bless the poor,Shall yourselves find blessing.Translated from the Latin by J. M. Neale

WE THREE KINGS

We Three Kings of Orient are,Bearing gifts we traverse afar,Field and fountain,Moor and mountain,Following yonder star.ChorusO Star of wonder, Star of night,Star with Royal Beauty bright,Westward leading.Still proceeding,Guide us to Thy perfect Light.Gaspard: Born a king on Bethlehem plain,Gold I bring to crown Him again;King forever,Ceasing neverOver us all to reign.Chorus: O Star of wonder…Melchior: Frankincense to offer have I,Incense owns a deity nigh;Prayer and praisingAll men raising,Worship Him God on high.Chorus: O Star of wonder…Balthazar: Myrrh is mine; its bitter perfumeBreathes a life of gathering gloom;Sorrowing, sighing,Bleeding, dying,Sealed in a stone-cold tomb.Chorus: O Star of wonder…Glorious now behold Him arise,King and God, and Sacrifice;Heav’n sings Allelujah:Allelujah,The earth replies.J. H. Hopkins, Jr.

GOD REST YE, MERRY GENTLEMEN

God rest ye, merry gentlemen; let nothing you dismay,For Jesus Christ, our Saviour, was born on Christmas-day.The dawn rose red o’er Bethlehem, the stars shone through the gray,When Jesus Christ, our Saviour, was born on Christmas-day.God rest ye, little children; let nothing you affright,For Jesus Christ, your Saviour, was born this happy night;Along the hills of Galilee the white flocks sleeping lay,When Christ, the child of Nazareth, was born on Christmas-day.God rest ye, all good Christians; upon this blessed mornThe Lord of all good Christians was of a woman born:Now all your sorrows He doth heal, your sins He takes away;For Jesus Christ, our Saviour, was born on Christmas-day.Dinah Maria Mulock

THE WASSAIL SONG

Here we come a-wassailingAmong the leaves so green,Here we come a-wanderingSo fair to be seen.Love and joy come to youAnd to your wassail too,And God bless you, and send youA happy New Year.We are not daily beggarsThat beg from door to door,But we are neighbours’ childrenThat you have seen before.Good Master and good Mistress,As you sit by the fire,Pray think of us poor childrenWho are wandering in the mire.Bring us out a tableAnd spread it with a cloth;Bring us out a mouldy cheeseAnd some of your Christmas loaf.God bless the master of this house,Likewise the mistress too;And all the little childrenThat round the table go.Old Devonshire Carol

Included by permission of The H. W. Gray Company.

WASSAILER’S SONG

Wassail! Wassail! all over the town,Our bread it is white, our ale it is brown;Our bowl is made of a maplin tree;We be good fellows all; – I drink to thee.Here’s to our horse, and to his right ear,God send master a happy new year;A happy new year as ever he did see, —With my wassail bowl I drink to thee.Here’s to our mare, and to her right eye,God send our mistress a good Christmas pie;A good Christmas pie as e’er I did see, —With my wassailing bowl I drink to thee.Here’s to our cow, and to her long tail,God send our master us never may failOf a cup of good beer: I pray you draw near,And our jolly wassail it’s then you shall hear.Be here any maids? I suppose here be some;Sure they will not let young men stand on the cold stone!Sing hey, O, maids! come trole back the pin,And the fairest maid in the house let us all in.Come, butler, come, bring us a bowl of the best;I hope your souls in heaven will rest;But if you do bring us a bowl of the small,Then, down fall butler, and bowl and all.Robert Southwell

CAROL IN PRAISE OF THE HOLLY AND IVY

(Holly and Ivy Made a Great Party)Holly and Ivy made a great party,Who should have the masteryIn lands where they go.Then spake Holly, “I am fierce and jolly,I will have the masteryIn lands where we go.”Then spake Ivy, “I am loud and proud,And I will have the masteryIn lands where we go.”Then spake Holly, and bent him down on his knee,“I pray thee, gentle Ivy,Essay me no villanyIn the lands where we go.”Fifteenth Century Carol

CEREMONIES FOR CHRISTMAS

Come, bring with a noise,My merry, merry boys,The Christmas log to the firing,While my good dame, sheBids ye all be free,And drink to your heart’s desiring.With the last year’s brandLight the new block, andFor good success in his spending,On your psalteries play,That sweet luck mayCome while the log is a-tending.Drink now the strong beer,Cut the white loaf here,The while the meat is a-shredding;For the rare mince-pieAnd the plums stand byTo fill the paste that’s a-kneading.Robert Herrick

CHRISTMAS EVE – ANOTHER CEREMONY

Come, guard this night the Christmas-pie,That the thief, though ne’er so sly,With his flesh-hooks, don’t come nighTo catch it.From him, who alone sits there,Having his eyes still in his ear,And a deal of nightly fearTo watch it.

ANOTHER TO THE MAIDS

Wash your hands, or else the fireWill not tend to your desire;Unwashed hands, ye maidens, know,Dead the fire, though ye blow.Robert Herrick

OUR JOYFUL FEAST

So, now is come our joyful feast,Let every soul be jolly!Each room with ivy leaves is drest,And every post with holly.Though some churls at our mirth repine,Round your brows let garlands twine,Drown sorrow in a cup of wine,And let us all be merry!Now all our neighbours’ chimneys smoke,And Christmas logs are burning;Their ovens with baked meats do choke,And all their spits are turning.Without the door let sorrow lie,And if for cold it hap to die,We’ll bury it in Christmas pie,And evermore be merry!George Wither

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handsel: a gift for good luck.