Advent Day 4 - Advent Longing

Advent Longing by W.S. Beattie

These are the greedy days.
It used to be that Advent was a longing fast,
a time to feel our need
in faith and tingling hope
and keen-eyed looking forward.
Now we cannot wait
but day by day and week by week
we celebrate obsessively
clutching at Christmas.
When at last it comes,
the day itself,
our glass is empty.
We have held the feast already,
and the news is stale

before it ever reaches us.
We cheat ourselves.
Yet – somehow – still we hope
in these spoiled days
that there may be a child.

published in 'A Word in Season ' NCEC 1984

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