A Poem for Christmas

God's Son was thrust into our World--
The world He helped create--
Out of the birth canal of an unmarried woman,
Into the musty stench of a ramshackle barn.
It was just his mother there to welcome Him
along with the man whom he would call father.
Domesticated livestock surrounded him;
The smell of their food and refuse filled the air.
Their water trough was used to wash
The newborn infant.

He suckled at his mother's breast,
she held him close, tenderly.
His new father, unsure of what to do,
Sat down next to them
Gazing upon the face of the infant.
He was wrapped in cloth
And laid in the animals' food trough
Atop a fresh pile of straw.
He cried, expelling air from his newly used lungs.

He gave up His divine powers,
Drawing instead upon the strength of His Father.
Completely human God came to us,
To walk amongst us, teach us, know us--
Most importantly to love us
And show us how it was meant to be.
He came, not born of nobility in a palace,
But of commoners in the lowest place,
Accessible to all. One of us.

I know it's not December 25th, but historically the church has celebrated Christmas for 12 days (hence The 12 Days of Christmas).