The Sprout

CLICmas #22

Posted by Tom_Bevan from Cardiff - Published on 22/12/2011 at 12:00
3 comments » - Tagged as Creative Writing, Festivals, People

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Yn Gymraeg

Welcome to window #22 of the CLICmas Advent Calendar! If you'd like a window of your own to strut your Christmas stuff in (or should that be stuffing - parp!) and have the chance of winning a Nintendo 3DS then email sam@cliconline.org.uk as soon as possible.

Street Christmas

Oh, how I dream
of those cosy mornings by the fire.
I look down on myself
watching Granddad wring out his snow sodden gloves.
I inhale the cinnamon light.

The snow’s turned to slush.
I get some soup from the shelter.

Oh, how I long
for those walks to the hill,
dragging a borrowed sled past the giggles and shrieks
of classmates who still believe.
I whizz up and down until mum comes to fetch me.

It’s raining.
My sleeping bag’s soaked.

Oh, how I wish
to reprise that tea-towel headdress,
and pretend to know the words to the verse
of the less memorable carol.
The applause surges and dad comes to the front with his camera.

Solitarily sitting.
The late night shoppers busy past.

Oh, how my heart aches
for those hours decorating the boughs,
helped onto a chair by big sister
but not quite reaching the top.
The festive hit wafts in from the radio in the kitchen.

The buskers have moved on.
It’s quiet today.

Oh, how I crave
that reassuring routine
of frantic opening, feast, stroll and speech
and it’s a wonderful life.
We all cry happy tears at the end.

I want to belong.
The bin liner’s softer than the floor.

Oh, Christmas
if only I’d known
that you were to cherish and to love.
Each moment a foreign history,
a half-forgotten language.

I look down on myself,
oblivious to my future.

They look down on me,
ignorant of my past.

Bitter concrete.
This is my Christmas present.

For many homeless people, Christmas is just another day of the year. For others it is the most difficult day of the year. This link contains real stories from the street.

Please support this campaign.

Are you a writer, photographer, film-maker, illustrator, DJ, musician, animator, blogger, poet or generally creative so-and-so who has something to say about Christmas? Well email sam@cliconline.org.uk to grab your CLICmas window now and win a Nintendo 3DS!