The Linnet's Wings | Page 56

WINTER ' FOURTEEN since and today I have come back to it again. Why? Because it is not just about Christmas. It is about history, art, tradition, scepticism and magic. First of all the title tells us Ron is going to turn Christmas inside out and outside in: he is going to examine this tale that began long ago with a guiding star. “There would, of course, have to be a star” That is a great hook line. So matter of fact. We all accept that, don’t we? But why would there ‘have to be a star’? Because it’s traditional as Ron points out. Only this star is unique. It is not just a star among many in the night sky. It is a guiding star. Now ask yourself: which of us nowadays would follow a star? We may read the occasional horoscope for fun but to believe in it is a different matter – to let it guide your life. But that is what religion is about – guiding your life. And to physically follow a star is not part of our modern mindset at all. We are not ancient astronomers. We are not medieval sailors. We live in a world where stars are understood. When I first read the poem, I immediately thought of my favourite part of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C S Lewis: “In our world,” said Eustace, “a star is a huge ball of flaming gas.” “Even in your world, my son, that is not what a star is but only what it is made of.” replies Ramandu, who is a fallen star. I have always loved the thought that mythology goes beyond our physical universe and in a way Lewis was saying that religion and science have two different ways of looking. Ron takes advantage here of the whole mythology of stars and of all the stories we heard as children. We didn’t literally believe all of those but they give us reference. He is challenging the complacency of our beliefs and our sense of logic. This particular star turns its spotlight on; “the merest shelter.” “its wattle daubed with ordinary midnight” I love the way he describes the scene as painted – daubed. This is the ordinary, the humble made into a tableau, instantly recognisable by millions: recreated for two millennia in art and nativity backdrops, painted scenery, miracle plays: make-believe. And in Ron’s poem the music begins as: The Linnet's Wings Poetry, Winter 2014