A True Christmas Tale - poem by Joni!

 Job 10:12 “Thou hast granted me life and favour, and thy visitation hate preserved my spirit.”

A True Christmas Tale

 A tale was told one Christmas eve,

Tis' better to give than to receive.

But I have no gift, my pockets bare,

I am but a poet, my poem I'll share.

I rose from my bed on Christmas day,

The sun was peeking down where I lay.

I crept down the stairs so I could see,

Had Santa left gifts under my tree?

I wasn't surprised, left unamazed,

I stood at my empty tree and gazed.

No gifts to give, my heart did ache,

But I would go on for Christmas' sake.

I threw on my clothes, rushed out the door,

Just what is all this excitement for?

I have no gifts to give to thee,

No presents were left beneath my tree.

So how can Christmas be happy and gay?

What is the secret that makes this day?

I swung open the door, to my surprise,

My family was sitting before my eyes.

Greetings exchanged, hugs of embrace,

Smiles that lit the entire place.

"We're glad you're here, accept this gift.

Maybe then your spirits will lift."

I saw in their eyes a special glow,

That sunk my heart, and let me know,

That they were giving with deepest love,

For God had signaled from above.

The spirit of Christmas is a radiant gleam,

That shines through the soul, in a warming beam.

I have felt that warmth throughout the year,

By spreading laughter, joy, and cheer.

But a chosen day was set aside,

For all of our arms to open wide.

So the gift I give has no ribbons or bows,

I'll give you peace that warms and glows.

I'll tell you I love you, I'll make you smile,

I'll see that your visit was worth the while.

I returned to my house, I plugged in my tree,

There sat a star gazing down at me.

I looked at the star with wondrous sight,

For God had appeared that Christmas night.

I was given the secret of Christmas eve,

Tis' better to give, than to receive.

Author’s note: I wrote this when I was 18

But it is still one of my most favorite Christmas

Poems that I wrote! May it go down in His-tor-y!

Merry Christmas to all

And to all a good night! 

The Tales of your Soul

Non-fiction writing

We writer’s can conjure up fairies and spellbinding magical lands. We can take you deep into the abyss while leaving you, the reader, breathless from the journey. That’s what writers do. We captivate you.

But ask us about intimate triumphant stories of our personal lives, then suddenly a lot of writer’s will put up a barricade not letting you enter into that domain. I see a growing market in this shattered economy for true stories. Sure the fiction will always carry us to the fantasy worlds of our dreams but reality is much more intriguing.

People tend to want to hear about struggles, pain and suffering. Just like our fictional characters have there ups and downs, when it switches to the character being a real live person with hardships and heart break, we the public want to read about the quest.

I, personally, have no hard time telling of the tragedies that have befallen my dysfunctional family and life. You know why? Because I would not be the woman I am today if ever I changed one incident.

Think about that for a moment. When someone says, “Do you have any regrets?” or “Is there anything you would change if you could go back and do it over again?” I always give a resounding, “No!” If I changed who my parents were, I would be a different woman. If I changed the poverty of my family, I would be a spoiled rich kid. If I changed my career and slung pizza’s all of my life (yes, I did sling pizza’s for a living.) I would not be the appreciative God fearing woman that I am today.

I always hear people complain about trivialities. “I broke another fake nail.” or “My car broke down and my kid needs to get to school, and I’m broke after we ordered out last night.” Why did you order out? Didn’t you think you would ever have a circumstance where the money was needed more than the “take-out” dinner?

Wake up people. Life is happening all around you and misfortune is knocking on everyone’s door. No one is exempt here and I don’t care what country or state that you live in, you are feeling the pain too!

Write about your life’s story. Give the world a tell all odyssey that they can sink their teeth into and most of all, relate to on many different levels. People in the world need to know that they’re not alone in their plight. Just think, you can touch someone in Somalia, making them feel not so alone.

So what are you waiting for? Are you going to let fear of the unknown stop you from sharing? Are you going to let the fantasy writing tie you up and bind you and keep you in denial any longer? Liberate yourself. Free the person within; participating in human compassion.

A True Christmas Story

A True Christmas Story

A tale was told one Christmas eve,

tis' better to give than to receive.

But I have no gift, my pockets bare,

I am but a poet, my poem I'll share.

I rose from my bed on Christmas Day;

the sun was peeking down where I lay.

I crept down the stairs so I could see,

had Santa left gifts under my tree?

I wasn't surprised, left unamazed,

I stood at my empty tree and gazed.

No gifts to give, my heart did ache,

but I would go on for Christmas' sake.

I threw on my clothes, rushed out the door;

just what is all this excitement for?

I have no gifts to give to thee;

no presents were left beneath my tree.

So how can Christmas be happy and gay?

What is the secret that makes this day?

I swung open the door, to my surprise,

my family was sitting before my eyes.

Greetings exchanged, hugs of embrace,

smiles that lit the entire place.

"We're glad you're here, accept this gift,

maybe then your spirits will lift."

I saw in their eyes a special glow,

that sunk my heart, and let me know,

that they were giving with deepest love,

for God had signaled from above.

The spirit of Christmas is a radiant gleam,

that shines through the soul, in a warming beam.

I have felt that warmth throughout the year,

by spreading laughter, joy, and cheer.

But a chosen day was set aside,

for all of our arms to open wide.

So the gift I give has no ribbons or bows,

I'll give you peace that warms and glows.

I'll tell you I love you, I'll make you smile,

I'll see that your visit was worth the while.

I returned to my house, I plugged in my tree,

there sat a star gazing down at me.

I looked at the star with wondrous sight,

for God had appeared that Christmas night.

I was given the secret of Christmas Eve,

tis' better to give, than to receive.