Thursday, January 3, 2008

Christmas Poem Contest at Sheila's!

Sheila is hosting another poetry contest on Enchiridion. (Her triolet contest two years ago was a roaring success.) The rules are as follows:

1. The poem must be written by you.

2. The poem must be about Christmas. It can be about the Incarnation itself, about the shepherds, the Magi, whatever, but it has to be Christmasy, and the real meaning of Christmas too. No Jingle Bells. Gathering together as a family stuff is okay, though. That is part of Christmas, although not the most important part.

3. It doesn't have to be written specifically for the contest. Any Christmas poems will do, no matter how long ago you wrote them.

4. Try to keep it to about 20 lines or less.

5. Each person can submit up to 3 poems, but please no more.

6. The winning poems will be posted on my blog with a link to your blog or website if you have one.

Any form is acceptable, although I warn you I'm biased toward formal verse. However, I have liked free verse in the past, provided it's actually good and not just random. The poems can be funny, serious, deep, whatever. I'll judge them as being good at what they are, not as being more entertaining or more spiritual.

You can email me your submissions at enchirdion1 at yahoo dot com, or leave them in the comment box. If you have other Christmas poems, not written by you but which you think I should post, please email them to me: I'm looking for some.

I hope this contest will help get both our creative and our spiritual juices flowing, and the finished poems will inspire us to think about Christmas more deeply. Let the contest begin!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Christmas Smile




Oh, how I love this time of year,


When everyone is full of cheer.


When family comes from miles around,


And everyone hopes that snow hits the ground.


It's family, friends, food, and the rest,


But, to the kids, presents are the best.


We can not forget the reason we're here,


Why we celebrate this time of year.


It's because a baby was born a long time ago,


And laid in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes.


This baby's birth is the reason,


We celebrate this wonderful season.


So, remember on Christmas Day,


Why family and friends have come to play.


Remember the birth of that special child,


And send him a Happy Birthday smile,


Merry Christmas to you and all the rest,


And pray this season may be the best.

By: Gin Ashley Parks

annewalker said...

Hey, this is a very nice idea. It's really nice to read short Christmas poems and I will really be happy reading those entries of the contest. Thanks! and happy holidays!