Christmas Every Week: Mistletoe Tradition
Arnold Kellett writes about a Druid healing tradition, and kisses sweet.
The Druids' sacred healing bough,
Cut with golden sickle:
Now reduced to an excuse
For giggling slap and tickle!
Mystic sprig of mistletoe
Suspended in the air;
We scarcely ever glance at it,
And yet we know it's there:
Licence for a little kiss
Or luscious osculation:
Ancient Celtic charm of love,
And modern medication ...
When doctors bring
blood pressure down
Wonder drugs they'll try:
One comes from the magic berries
That send BP sky-high!
An English custom once, they say,
Which shocked our foreign friends:
Stolen kisses, none so sweet,
But that, of course, depends
On who is kissing who, and how -
And please don't overdo it:
Tradition's limit don't exceed,
Or you are sure to rue it:
One kiss allowed - no more, no less -
For each berry white and pearly,
And after each kiss a berry's plucked -
By those who get there early!
