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Rodborough Robin Trail ~ It Came Upon A Midnight Clear

Stuart Butler

Thursday, December 3rd, 2020

1 Leave a comment on verse 1 0 It came upon a midnight clear, 
That glorious song of old, 
When angels bent down to the earth, 
And changed machine guns into harps,  
And turned leaden bullets into golden carols 
That drifted across no man’s land. 
And choirs of soldiers joined the angels 
In a cease-fire of exultation, 
While all the bloodied uniformed citizens 
Of heaven above watched as silent knights,
As helmets and caps and whisky and schnapps 
Were passed from frozen side to frightened side.
A robin trilled a winter song of peace;
A soldier kicked a ball into the air,  
And there it stayed, suspended high up in the sky, 
Shining forever in a continent’s memory;  
A star of peace in a bleak midwinter’s century.

Notes

This year, my suburb of Stroud, Rodborough is putting together a Rodborough Robin Trail, and I am joining in. I’ve put the poem on a lectern in the front garden by the wall and decorated the lectern with holly and red and white poppies. (The Robin(s) connection with Swindon Town is purely coincidental. Allegedly.

(P.S For the observant out there, a different earlier version of this poem, without the significant Robin connection, was first published here in 2005 on the old site.)

Stuart Butler www.radicalstroud.co.uk
Stroud Football Poets 


The ‘Christmas Truce’ poems section on our site is now an extensive collection of so many of your poignant poems published here since 2000 .Do check it out and please submit your own .

Football At Christmas memories/poems (especially during this very different one) also as always most welcome. The ‘Christmas Truce’ and ‘Football at Christma’ sections casn both be found under ‘Kick It Out & Christmas Truce’ .Just scroll down on the left hand side of the home page.

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