Deep in December
close to the edge
of the darkest day
and endless nights,
remember, my friend,
remember
one single candle
can not be ignored,
as a lighthouse, a beacon
it leads you back home
through winter
through snow
to warmth of the ember
remember, my friend
remember
that paths to the light
takes you through darkness,
where one single candle
is all that it takes.
Deep in December
remember, my friend,
the light
of your very last candle.
Today I host dVerse OLN where you can link up any one poem of your choice. You can also join us live either at 3PM EST today or on Saturday at 10 AM EST.
If you don’t want to read your own poem you can still take part and listen, or simply meet the daring poets who read their poem.
December 7, 2023

A pleasingly careful and very deliberate write Bjorn. The steadiness of your verse mirroring the tentative journey through the darkness, guided only buy one single, frail light. A metaphor for so much, especially these days. That interplay of dark and light always being a favoured theme of us all.
Thank you Scott, the words just came to me when I said those word and indeed the light and dark are both needed I think
Winter whips up some some awful gales, extincting so many lights. The one we carry within is the only candle it can’t reach. Well done, Bjorn.
That is exactly so, and it only takes one light to carry us through darkness.
Reminds me of “Remember, Remember the 5th of November”. Just the flow of it and the repeating of the word.😁
“paths to the light
takes you through darkness,”
These lines stand out to me due to wording. Not only does light take us through darkness, sometimes we need to walk through darkness to get to the light. Important to remember always.❤️
I like the repetitions, and the word ‘last’ in the final line gives the poem a slightly sinister edge.
A myriad of images of brave single candles and celebrations of light come to mind with this poem, Bjorn. I appreciate you reading it for OLN Live today!
The lone candle, 🕯️ so appropriate since this is the first day of Hanukkah for many and the ninth candle which is used to light the other eight is called the shamash or servant/helper candle. Your words reminded me of that, being light in the darkness.
We are still in the first week of advent here, and that also means one single candle.
Indeed it does! The candle of hope. 🙂
I loved hearing you read this and enjoy even more reading it myself. The repetition of “remember” is like a prod….and that single candle…reminds me of hope in the darkness. May we ever seek it out.
You read this so well and the sentiment in it is uplifting. Great to hear all of the news from you and others. Excited for the new for 2024.
Nice poem. Lyrical, clear.
For me, the poem also warns that the Light of the candle must be etched into memory, heart, soul, vision, and carried when the physical candles are gone. A sort of a never-ending vigil.
The motif of the candles reminded me of the tradition to light the candles on ones windowsill on Samhain night, so the spirits who slipped through the veil between worlds can be guided home by the candle-light.
Extremely moving Björn! 🙏
This is so necessary to read at a time when we are wondering how our individual voices will matter given the magnitude of horrors in the world… even one candle matters in total darkness… we cannot stop speaking.
What Rajani said!
An ominous opening stanza, Björn, with the ‘edge of the darkest day’ which, for you, is indeed the edge of endless nights. I love the idea of one single candle ‘as a lighthouse, a beacon… through winter’.
This is incredibly potent, Bjorn! I loved hearing you reading this on Oln and was instantly reminded of ‘remember remember the 5th of November..’ 😊
Especially like this part; “one single candle can not be ignored, as a lighthouse, a beacon it leads you back home
through winter through snow to warmth of the ember.” 💖💖
It was great to hear you read this.
I liked the repeated use of “remember,” and yes, even one candle brings light in the darkest days.
I love your poem and the meaning it conveys. Yes, the one small light in the darkness does make a difference, and that one small light is often another person.
I love how this piece flows. Very gentle. A soft reminder and an uplifting message. Yes all it takes is one candle in the darkness.
Love the effortless rhyme, and the reminder to shine.
Björn, I love the imagery of one light leading us out of the darkness… especially in December, a tough month for many people.
I love this,
“one single candle
can not be ignored,”
any amount of light changes the darkness. I also like the flow of your poem and ember with remember. To me, this is a beautiful reminder of the power of loving connection.
It is, and when reading yours I realized we had the same thoughts.
🕯️☮️
So very true, that one little light shining through the darkness should never be ignored. It does bring you home eventually.
Enjoyed hearing you read this poem Björn
Much♡love
Hi Björn — I’ve really enjoyed the OLN Live Thursdays, sorry to hear they’re going away. Reading and contributing to the poetry of the d’verse online community has been wonderful, and I hope I am able to in the new year… it is my intention — when possible. Kathy comes home this Wednesday, and it appears we will be rejoining her battle, so my writing may be less frequent into the future — we will see what presents itself, as I am also dealing with my own issues. This is my 20th year posting poetry online, across a number of wonderful organized sites… and it is a joy I will not allow myself to completely abandon. I am sending this message to those in this dVerse community to whom I am most drawn, and who have shown me consistent kindness. Happy holiday to you my friend. You are a pleasure to read. ✌🏼🫶🏼
We will see how it goes, we do love to have you around, but as I said, we want to do a few changes to OLN since it attracts less and less poets, plus it is a lot of work to do the prompts, reading and commenting plus having two live sessions. Personally I would have preferred the Thursday session since it works better for me…
Beautiful, encouraging words.