Promise

We are dazzled
by brightly coloured lights
the silver, gold and white,
hanging above the busy street.
Sparkles drip from trees and eaves –
even the traffic lights flash with Christmas cheer.
Above us, the sky is goose-feather grey,
our noses sting with icy air
and below our feet the path echoes
with winter’s forge. Beyond the gate,
a pastel surprise awaits
among sparse grass and curled up leaves:
slender stems stand tall,
tender buds brave the chill
with the promise of Christmas daffodils

Kim M. Russell, 13th December 2018

Promise

A new poem for dVerse Poets Pub Open Link Night

I’ve just got back from my daughter’s where I have been honing my grand-parenting skills and having a wonderful time with my grandson. The last thing I did with them was walk through the park to ‘Monkey Music’ and back. We enjoyed the songs and actions in a small, friendly group, but when we emerged from the warm hall in which the session was held, we were struck by how cold it has become. Imagine my surprise when we got to the other side of the park and saw a patch of budding daffodils!

As we start our seasonal break at the dVerse Poets Pub this week, I’d like to wish everyone a merry Christmas and a happy new Year!

77 thoughts on “Promise”

  4. Joyous indeed–the common denominator poetically out here on the trail seems to be love and good cheer. With each poem, my smile widens and my heart flutters. I like your line /below our feet the path echoes with winter’s forge/. Happy holidays to you and yours!

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    1. That’s where I am Scott – only I wasn’t up here in chilly Norfolk when I snapped those daffs but down in Guildford with my daughter. I think it might be just like last year – no snow until the end of February/beginning of March.
      Best wishes for a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

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    1. Thank you, Misky. That was down in Guildford not up here in Norfolk, where it is so much colder. I just hope those daffs bloom. Best wishes for a merry Christmas and a happy New Year! 🙂 xx

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  11. I have been checking on my grandson too every weekend. Love the promise of daffodils though we are in the midst of a very cold winter blast.

    Wishing you and yours Merry Christmas and joy filled new year!!! Thank you for being part of our team.

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    1. Isn’t being a grandparent wonderful? I was so surprised to see those daffodils but also quietly content – let’s hope the buds withstand the cold and burst into bright flowers.
      Thank you for having me on the team, Grace,. All the best Christmas wishes to you and your family, and a fantastic new year. 🙂 xxx

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  12. I loved your sky of goose feather grey! No daffodils here as yet but under my flowering quince I spied a small bunch of violets blooming protected from the snow. It is these magnificent small surprises that give us hope. I am glad you enjoyed your baby sitting. Merry Christmas hugs to you and yours and a very happy new year!

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    1. Thank you so much,. Toni. I’m imagining the colour of violets against the snow – beautiful! Have a wonderful Christmas, Toni, and I’m sending you, your husband and various pets hugs and Christmas wishes. 😉

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  13. Sigh. Kim, you are blessed to daffodils, so early in the season. In southern Ontario, its least another 3-4 months, before they greets us. Until then, its long hours of cold temperatures and cursing of snow storms. In my part of Toronto, a thin blanket of white snow covers the grow, as the sun fights to be seen.

    Kim, wish you and your extended family, a safe and happy holidays.

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    1. Thank you, Therisa, and the best Christmas wishes to you and yours too.
      Last year we didn’t get any snow until the end of February/beginning of March, just before my grandson was born, and I get the feeling it could happen again. The seasons are slipping.

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    1. Thank you, V.J. I had such a wonderful time with Lucas and really didn’t want to leave him, but I’m going back for a whole week in February. 🙂 Have a great Christmas and I’ll see you on the poetry trail in the New Year.

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  16. The pretty things, they just don’t want to miss out on the Christmas fun! 🌼 🎄
    I also love the goose-grey and winter’s forge. So many senses are tickled here! 😊
    The title adds a depth of reflection to the joy, brave little daffodil promises!

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  20. It is a lovely spot of color in such a gray season, but the blush in the wrong spot sometimes can be a precursor of more ominous things, like the second half of the old saying, “Red at night, sailors’ delight. Red in the morning, sailors take warning.”

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  26. I have always thought it cool that streetlights are red and green for Christmas. I worry about the daffodils this early. I like your description of the world at Christmas.

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  32. I love the contrast and clear imagery of “goose-feather grey.” I felt right there, in the snow and colors and the surprise of the daffodils. I love their spring brightness, but here it would be way too early!

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