Innkeeper

So why did I do it? It still isn't clear. The rooms were all taken; The busiest this year. And all of them dusty, And all of them tired. The trek to their birth-place By Rome now required. A census, the issue. A right royal pain. And doubtless the purpose More tribute to gain. The evening was settling, The rush nearly o'er. But still came a knocking For help at my door. The couple so tender, The young girl with child. The husband imploring With eyes almost wild. About to refuse them, I glanced once at her. Amazingly peaceful And patient, demure... "But wait, there's the stable. Not much of a spot. But shelter and bedding; That's all I have got. And liquids and lanterns And clean swaddling fare. Go quickly, my children, Your baby comes there!" (And so near my livestock Messiah was born. The night sky, the shepherds, The earth-changing morn.) https://issuu.com/deedub51/docs/bethlehem_king