This weekend, there will be carol services in churches up and down the land. I have lost count of the number of carol services I must have been to over the years. Despite that, they never stop being special. At a time when life is busy and packed with shopping and wrapping and cooking, the Carol service is a time to stop and reflect and think about where Christmas began. A lovely opportunity to sing, and enjoy Christmas carols and music which for me are as much a part of Christmas as my mums sausage rolls. If you haven’t thought about going to a carol service this year why not add it to your Christmas to do list.
In the mean time enjoy this poem by Wendy Cope which has become one of my Christmas favourites.
CATHEDRAL CAROL SERVICE
Those of us who are not important enough
To have places reserved for us
And who turned up too late to get a seat at all,
Stand in the nave aisles, or perch on stone ledges.
We shiver in the draught from the west door.
We cannot see the choir, the altar or the candles.
We can barely see the words on our service sheets.
But we can hear the music. And we can sing
For the baby whose parents were not important enough
To have a place reserved for them,
And who turned up too late to get a room at all.