'tis the Season

Shame on you for dismissing the phrase as cliche. Tough we might hear the slogan a thousand times this year; Remember for just a moment, There's a meaning Behind the words that fall bountiful And beautiful on a stubborn pair of ears. Remember the reason for this season of celebration. They call it Christmas, a celebration Of Christ and the miracle of his coming Naked and exposed, into this world as we all do. Mother Mary wrapped him in what she could Laying him to rest in a make shift bed, In a lowly stable. How could they have comprehended What the angel had meant in his blessing on their union? How did Joseph accept this gift Thrust in their lives by some heavenly miracle and virgin birth. This happening, This thing we celebrate on a winter solstace, This birthing of a Messiah is the reason We give so many tightly wrapped gifts to friends and family and strangers, Oh so jolly just once a year. There's a reason Why we cram all our keep sakes on a well lit tree, Why we wrap the inevitable with a mountainous many layers of post plastic wax paper, Why we hang strange herbs to join lips beneath. There's a reason why we hung the ornamental socks in a row On the stairway railings or over the heart (socks far too large for even these feet to wear). There's a reason why we gorge on pumpkin pie And chug down gallons of egg-nog. There was a reason For man to invent things like candy canes. To each his own. To each her own wonderful way To place cookies out for midnight visitors Or hay for hungry camels that carry wise-men through the night. A bright burning candle in an empty window sill Recalls a Western star That welcomed true the angels' proclamation Of new born hope in the town of David, Resting silent on that night only a couple millennia ago. How many joyous souls Have justly celebrated the happenings of that night? ... and this year we've been given the chance to celebrate again.