Wrapped and swaddled
Wrapped and swaddled
Hunched and brooding
Hands clasped tightly
Around a mug of mulled wine
A bed before midnight
Asleep as the bells chime
There are no phone calls
None made or received
When once champagne corks
Popped
Drunk straight from the bottle
Jammed-up
Surrounded by strangers
On the embankment
Watching fireworks
Making a few
As the night wore on
Finding a bed in which to sleep
Somewhere
Eventually.
Too many people spent time
Throwing it away
To consider
The future.
A bed before midnight
Not on your life!
Today there is nothing to celebrate
The solstice was more than a week ago
What did the druids ever do for us
The pages turn
On the Roman calendar
Another year
Older
Too much to remember
Too little to regret
For Auld Lang Syne.
In fond remembrance
Of another time
When too many people
Believed they had more
Than time to spare.
Where are they now
Where have they gone
The upstart needs a jump-start
Asleep at the back
Lights out
At midnight
Toasting in the year
In the morning
With a cup of strong coffee
Fortified with a splash
Of scotch whisky.
Happy days
To the dinosaurs
And the mouth breathers.