A Very Misery Christmas
No winter postcards of deep snow and bliss
No winter postcards of mistletoe kiss
Winter was cold, winter was tough
Winter was long and we all had it rough
No Father Christmas, no Saint Nicholas
No bright blue, glass baubles, no presents for us
Fantasy Christmas, fantasy tree
We had to live, through the reality
Dad was long gone, the man did his best
When chronic bronchitis, seeped into his chest
The place where he toiled, was all he had known
But it's dust and it's damp had now left mam alone
What would befall us, what would we be
Who would care for us, if we did not have, she
Mam did her best for her nine hungry brood
But I will never forget, there was so little food
Mam had her pride but the children came top
She burnt all the cupboards to keep the rooms hot
Furniture smashed for the fire was the norm
Furniture burned just to keep the kids warm
The hard times as a child sit deep in my mind
The emotions and memories, I remember, unkind
The hunger, the cold, the panger remain
So little food, again and again
The times were of hardship, poverty, pain
Coats on the bed was the name of the game
No warm fancy blankets in my childhood
Just old duffle coats and we fought for the hood
All of the cooking, from one frying pan
Hunched round a fire, nine kids and their mam
All I remember is fried porridge oats
Dark dankie bedrooms and old duffle coats
Snotty nosed kids crying hungry and cold
What bread there might be would be covered in mould
All of the clothing was hand me down stuff
Nine children to dress, there was never enough
One stocking each and sometimes one shoe
In all of my memory I can't recall two
Now most of the children, have just what they need
Warm clothing and food and laptop PC.s
Ipods and kindles with mince pies for tea
Have they ever heard of the word, poverty
I am not angry, I am not sad
One learns to accept, what one had as a lad
Would you swap that Hulme time, to be young in this day
With modern technology and regular pay
Would you sell your soul to escape poverty
Then sell it elsewhere, your not swapping with me
Post Comments
Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.
Please
Login
to post a comment
Turn off ads, get more exposure for your poetry, and get more features with a
Premium Membership.
