The Cultivation of Christmas Trees

by T.S. Eliot

There are several attitudes towards Christmas,
Some of which we may disregard:
The social, the torpid, the patently commercial,
The rowdy (the pubs being open till midnight),
And the childish — which is not that of the child
For whom the candle is a star, and the gilded angel
Spreading its wings at the summit of the tree
Is not only a decoration, but an angel.

The child wonders at the Christmas Tree:
Let him continue in the spirit of wonder
At the Feast as an event not accepted as a pretext;
So that the glittering rapture, the amazement
Of the first-remembered Christmas Tree,
So that the surprises delight in new possessions
(Each one with its peculiar and exciting smell),
The expectation of the goose or turkey
And the expected awe on its appearance,

So that the reverence and the gaiety
May not be forgotten in later experience,
In the bored habituation, the fatigue, the tedium,
The awareness of death, the consciousness of failure,
Or in the piety of the convert
Which may be tainted with a self-conceit
Displeasing to God and disrespectful to children
(And here I remember also with gratitude
St. Lucy, her carol, and her crown of fire):

So that before the end, the eightieth Christmas
(By 'eightieth' meaning whichever is last)
The accumulated memories of annual emotion
May be concentrated into a great joy
Which shall be also a great fear, as on the occasion
When fear came upon every soul:
Because the beginning shall remind us of the end
And the first coming of the second coming.

Expert in a Dying Field

by Elizabeth Stokes

Can we erase our history?
Is it as easy as this?
Plausible deniability
I swear I've never heard of it
And I can close the door on us
But the room still exists
And I know you're in it

Hours of phrases I've memorised
Thousands of lines on the page
All of my notes in a desolate pile
I haven't touched in an age
And I can burn the evidence
But I can't burn the pain
And I can't forget it

How does it feel
To be an expert in a dying field?
How do you know
It's over when you can't let go?
You can't let go, you can't stop, can't rewind
Love is learned over time
'Til your an expert in a dying field

The city is painted with memory
The water will never run clear
The birds and the bees and the flowers and trees
They know that we've both been here
And I can flee the country for the worst of the year
But I'll come back to it

Can we erase our history?
Is it as easy as this?
Maybe in other realities
The road never took this twist
And I can close the door on us
But the room still exists

The Waiting

by Tom Petty

Don't it feel like heaven right now?
Don't it feel like something from a dream?
I've never known nothing quite like this
Don't it feel like tonight might never be again?
We know better than to try and pretend
No one coulda ever told me about this

The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you see one more card
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part

I might have chased a couple women around
All it ever got me was down
Then there were those that made me feel good
But never as good as I feel right now
You're the only one that's ever known how
To make me want to live like I want to live now

Don't let it kill you
Don't let it get to you
I'll be your bleeding heart
I'll be your crying fool
Don't let this go too far
Don't let it get to you

The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you get one more yard
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part

Quicksand

by Harriette Pilbeam

I feel myself take it for granted
I know I should be happy here
Everything that I wished would happen
Is staring back at me crystal clear

That's when the pattern takes control
Playing the game over and over
Letting me know it's never going to let me go
I know

If I had everything I wanted, would I want more?
Would I keep fighting if there's nothing left to fight for?
Sometimes I feel like I'm just sinking into quicksand
I used to think that this was something I could die for
I hate admitting to myself that I was never surе
Sometimes I feel like I'm just sinking into quicksand

Onе thing I never thought I'd be
Chasing my tail just for the feeling
Lying in bed, stare at the ceiling
And farewell the light, the dark is stealing

It's all I know and I'm taking it back
Taking it back

I'm waiting, anticipating, breath bated
Thinking about everything I never did
I'm trying, but what's the use in trying
When all I'm left with is disillusionment

Just Like Heaven

by Robert Smith

'Show me, show me, show me how you do that trick
'The one that makes me scream,' she said
'The one that makes me laugh,' she said
And threw her arms around my neck
'Show me how you do it, and I promise you
'I promise that I'll run away with you
'I'll run away with you'

Spinning on that dizzy edge
Kissed her face and kissed her head
Dreamed of all the different ways
I had to make her glow
'Why are you so far away?' she said
'Why won't you ever know that I'm in love with you?
'That I'm in love with you?'

You, soft and only
You, lost and lonely
You, strange as angels
Dancing in the deepest oceans
Twisting in the water
You're just like a dream

Daylight licked me into shape
I must have been asleep for days
And moving lips to breathe her name
I opened up my eyes
And found myself alone, alone
Alone above a raging sea
That stole the only girl I loved
And drowned her deep inside of me

Telephone Line

by Jeff Lynne

Hello, how are you?
Have you been alright?
Through all those lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely nights
That's what I'd say
I'd tell you everything
If you'd pick up that telephone

Hey, how you feeling?
Are you still the same?
Don't you realize the things we did
Were all for real, not a dream?
I just can't believe
They've all faded out of view

Blue days, black nights
I look into the sky
The love you need ain't going to see you through
And I wonder why
The little things you planned ain't coming true

Telephone line, give me some time
I'm living in twilight
Telephone line, give me some time
I'm living in twilight

Ok, so no one's answering
Well, can't you just let it ring a little longer, longer, longer?
I'll just sit tight
Through shadows of the night
Let it ring forevermore

Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t’ve)

by Pete Shelley

You spurn my natural emotions
You make me feel I'm dirt
And I'm hurt
And if I start a commotion
I run the risk of losing you
And that's worse

Ever fallen in love with someone?
Ever fallen in love, in love with someone?
Ever fallen in love, in love with someone
You shouldn't've fallen in love with?

I can't see much of the future
Unless we find out what's to blame
What a shame
And we won't be together much longer
Unless we realize
That we are the same