A Christmas Poem

First, before anyone asks my book ' Death of a Pilgrim' is going very well but is still not finished I will keep you posted.
I am doing a poetry course at the moment, it looked so good that I couldn't resist despite time being an ever-pressing issue.
This is my first marked assignment which I got back today. It is meant to be an example of a conceit, a kind of overblown metaphor. In keeping with the season, it is a bit sentimental but it got good enough reviews on my course for me to risk sharing it here.
I hope that you enjoy it but have a good Christmas anyway.

The Christmas butterfly

The Christmas caterpillar is what lives with your heart.

It feeds on all the sadness that the world tries to impart

It eats around the margins of the profit-hungry boss.

and nibbles at the hatred that’s the cause of war and loss

It first came into being some Two thousand years past

with tired and hungry migrants finding shelter at last

The Christmas cocoon is the saddest thing to see

as it wraps up peace and kindness with last years Christmas tree

Generosity and goodness we put them all away

And tell ourselves the needy don’t deserve our help today.

You have to earn our help we say by working day and night

we-ll only hand out baubles to those who get it right.

But when the Christmas Butterfly, emerges from it’s shell

There is no discrimination allowed within its realm

If not everyone is able, to enjoy what Christmas brings

If there are sadness grief and loneliness amongst the other things

Then that’s why the butterfly has wings of red, green and gold

to help you fly to people who have nothing to behold.

You see, it takes an act of kindness it’s eggs to fertilise

A quietly given gift that should not be advertised

You can make the future caterpillars crop up everywhere

so Christmas can be Christmas for everyone to share.

Nanowrimo part two.

Telling people that you are doing NaNoWriMo always prompts two questions at the end of the month.
The first is did you win?
The second is can I read your book now?
In my case, the answer to both questions is no.
To win Nano you need to have written 50000 words I was nowhere near, in fact, I was behind from the start. I have had an email from the organisers commiserating and telling me sometimes it takes more than one attempt. Initially, I was disappointed there is little doubt that I was neither well enough prepared nor did I give enough time to it. It has only taken a few though to start feeling quite pleased with myself. I wrote close to 35000 words which is a good half of my book. I am hoping that I can finish the first draft by the end of the year. I have learned a lot about the process of writing. This was my first attempt at a full-length novel, for the next one I know more or less what I need to do to prepare. I know that sitting and writing one thing at a time is not for me. Having more that one project on the go helps me to think, I can switch from one to another when I get stuck. I can now visualise what a novel feels like to write, despite not having finished yet, which will help me finish. It will help me plan the next book.
By the end of the year or shortly thereafter I will have a raw first draft. My plan is to put it away for a month or two to give me some objectivity and then start the editing process. My initial thought was that the whole process to self-publication would be about 4 months, I now think that it will be about six so I should have a book ready for reading by April or May. I am happy with that. Other people are faster I know, some are slower but the advantage of getting older is being able to work at a pace you enjoy.
So the next question has to be would I do Nano again, and I would maybe with less fear and more organisation. Also with the knowledge that it is with the aim of writing something not just getting words on paper and so I will be the one in control of how much I write, not the numbers on a chart.