Is it true our pretty Christmas story?

And is it true

Our pretty Christmas story?

No never true, for it is more than true

The heart leaps at it.

It is a doorway into joy that each of us can enter.

The angels singing. Surely we hear that whisper when a baby's born.

The ox and ass bowing their heads.

It's right, for every child knows that in some ways,

The beasts see more than we do.

Then come the curious, shepherds and wise men,

The peasants and the sages both knowing

That something very new is here.

And last those two who haunted the doorways of the synagogues.

Anna and Simeon

Suddenly their doubt has ended

It's come what they'd been waiting for.

And was it like the pictures in our minds

An English landscape, snow, Mary a pure bred Anglo Saxon,

The baby blue eyed?

No it was not. But that's no matter.

No matter how we see it, it can be our way

to see that God is in this fearful world and cares for it.

For this is more than truth. It is a doorway into joy.

This Christmas let us go through the doorway.

Nick Mellersh 2016

Today (Sunday Jan 31) is Candlemass  the last act in the nativity story. When two strange prophets Simeon and Anna tell Mary that her son is something very amazing.  Heaven knows what Mary thought.  Weren't the angels enough without having two eccentric old pensioners disrupt the Christening?  Anyway here's a holy poem to mark the end of this Christmas.  I hope it makes you think.

The work on the ebooks continues and we are making good progress on Illustrated Fluteplaying as an ebook.

As ever there is a new set of drawings on the sister blog currently showing "A nude a week", well almost every week anyway.  See http://ipadpainting-jeanie.blogspot.co.uk/

Poem of the week: How Freya became the world's best football player

This is the story of a girl named Freya

Who became the world's best football player.

It all began as a sort of mistake

When her mother baked her a beautiful cake.

She was almost eight and for her birthday you see,

There were eight sugar fairies playing under a tree.

Each one was lovely, but best of all

Was the one who was running and kicking a ball.

Her birthday party came and, out of control,

Freya grabbed that fairy and swallowed her whole!

The next thing that happened was really frightening

Freya was struck by a bolt of lightening.

And everyone said “How good and speedy!

It serves Freya right for being so greedy.”

But Freya stood up, not dead at all

And said “I really must kick a ball.”

She ran to the garden as quick as quick

Found a ball and gave it a terrific kick.

It went through the walls, it was kicked so hard

And knocked the top of the London Shard

And traveled, at twice the speed of sound,

And landed in Arsenal's football ground.

Arsene Wenger said “I must have that player.

There's a name on the ball and the name is Freya.”

They found her and taught her to head and pass 'n all

And soon she was in the first team at Arsenal.

The other team laughed at the big surprise,

She was eight, and a girl, and was half their size.

Their captain said “Go easy on her mate”

But Freya had the ball and then it was too late.

She dribbled round the captain, quick and neat,

Ran through his legs and round his feet,

She jumped over his head and the crowd all roared

Freya gave a kick and Hooray!, she scored.

And she scored and scored and went on until

Her team was winning 50 nil.

The other team soon forgot their sneers

And every one of them left in tears.

After that Freya was a huge sensation

She was in all the papers throughout the nation

And her playing career went up and up

Till she played for England in the big World Cup.

They were playing the final against Brazil

There was a minute to go and the score nil – nil.

And the crowd was shouting to every player

"Pass the ball, pass the ball, pass it to Freya!!"

She got it with only ten seconds to go,

How she ran so fast we will never know.

She made each man look like a silly one

As she dribbled through the legs of every Brazilian.

Then she kicked with all of her heart and soul

And it broke the net of the Brazilian goal.

The crowd all cheered and every player

Was shouting “Hooray! Hooray for Freya”

There were fireworks and music. It was quite as scene

As she took the World Cup from the Queen.

There were shouts and cheers and a great big fuss

And she rode at the front of an open-topped bus.

Now each team in the world are wanting Freya

'Cos she is the world's best football player.

They said to her “Freya, see how this sounds,

We want to give you ten gazillion pounds.”

But Freya said “No that's not for me

I want to go home to my Mum's for tea.”

And so she did.

Nick Mellersh 2016 The quick sketches by Jeanie see her blog at http://ipadpainting-jeanie.blogspot.co.uk/ where she puts up a nude drawing most weeks

Happy new year to you all.  Hope you are happy with the change from the serious to the ridiculous.  That's how life is it seems to me.  Nick

PPS: Went to see this great film last night written and directed by my God-daughter's husband.  It's real fun and we hope it will go far see http://www.5greedybankers.com/