New Year Prayer: ( January 3rd , 2026)

The snow falls with a

supernatural slowness

over the village.

The old cobbled streets are cold

& crisp & silent.

News reports highlight foreign

wars, but here at least

there is a sense of stillness at

the edge of madness.

The West may point its bony

fingers at the East,

but vain imperial schemes

are now the stuff of

yesteryear. Yet, lies still breed

all kinds of monsters.

Primed narratives of airbrushed

propaganda pour

out of our screens, yet many

don't seem to notice.

Look where the bombs fall; ancient

towns turn to rubble.

Blizzards seem to numb the mind

We need to forget

current troubles for a while,

at least, or go mad.

Soon a white world will emerge

to silence the noise

of rampant Modernity,

which pollutes life's

pure pools immeasurably.

We can then reflect;

reconsider our options.

in dream- like time: where

brittle boundaries dissolve.

As we warm our hands

by log fires, we all huddle

together and pray,

that Love can prosper again;

without distractions.

Notice the tender beauty

of a holly wreath

surrounded by contrasting

white crystals of ice.

Chiming church bells appear to

suggest that life still

has purpose on earth, despite

secular discourse,

which often sows seeds of doubt.

We cling to rituals

as they provide prized structures

and patterns in a

rootless age that is frightened

of its own shadow.

Streaming visions seep through cracks

in contrived designs.

We must keep moving forward

despite miasmal

mists of our 'out of joint' Time;

for they are fleeting.

We must keep playing soothing songs

that ease winter's gloom.

We must keep lighting candles,

in homes and chapels.

We need world peace this New Year.