robins (or not, as the case may be)

.
this is:
.
.
"The north wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will the robin do then,
Poor thing?
.
"He'll sit in a barn,
To keep himself warm,
And hide his head under his wing,
Poor thing."
.
ANON

doing my part

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.
..
Our God, heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ.
.

Enough for Him, Whom cherubim, worship night and day,
Breastful of milk, and a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him, Whom angels fall before,
The ox and ass and camel which adore.
.
Angels and archangels may have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;
But His mother only, in her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the beloved with a kiss.
.
What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.

CHRISTINA ROSSETTI 1872
.

as sung by Gloucester Cathedral Choir

the first Sunday of Advent

only readers of a certain age
and a certain televisual persuasion
will understand the relevance of that. . .

if you do,
I hope it brings a smile to your face

(but can I just add for the record that I never liked Leslie Judd?
there's only ever been one true Blue Peter girl:
the marvellous Valerie Singleton)

.
but this
is what it should really
all be about. . .
.
. . .isn't?

I'm behind the scenes getting ready. . .

. . .please come back in December!