Christmas
The glory and the pageantry will pass
Into another year’s oblivion
Like August evening sounds in meadow grass.
Our offerings and songs will linger on.
The taste of winter in sharp winds is here,
Another year has come and sung its songs;
Too many people still are filled with fear,
Bewildered in this world of rights and wrongs.
God’s spirit will be more than Christmas Day
When we find haven in His reverence;
We must live in His Spirit all the way,
To follow Him will make the difference.
All will have homes, warmth, food: all befriended
When He comes first before festivities,
All fears on earth will be so nearly ended
With God’s dimensions added to our lives.
Jesse Stuart
December Nights
He filled the room with loud imaginings.
Branches at the window, crooked and black
against the moon, turned reindeer antlers
clicking together, drawing Santa’s shadow
along the wall. Out of the pages of books
camels strode, stately and aloof.
Wisemen jostled with elves all warted and wenned,
chattering and sawing, screeching and scurrying so
he thought surely his father would come to see
why elves hummed and hammered in the room,
why camels walked overhead. Then he would
wish the room a creche-so still the only
sounds were straw rustling, a lamb dreaming
in baa, the Christchild sucking his fist.
Jim Wayne Miller
An Appalachian Christmas
It’s Christmastime in Appalachia
With snow on the frozen ground,
The evergreens draped in ice,
And the wind making a whipping sound.
The deer in search of their holiday meal,
The black bear hunkered down,
It’s Christmastime in Appalachia,
With Christmas cheer all around.
Squirrels digging the acorns
They buried in the fall,
It’s Christmastime once again,
As Santa’s reindeer call.
Logs are crackling on the fire
With hot cider on the stove,
And the pleasant scent in the air
Of homegrown handpicked cloves.
The turkey roasting in the oven,
With sweet potatoes ready to bake,
It’s Christmastime in Appalachia
With the smell of carrot cake.
The Christmas star shines high above
The mountains covered in snow and sleet,
As we give thanks for family and friends
And the holiday meal we’re about to eat.
John W. McCauley
2024
Dear Readers,
On behalf of the JSF, I offer you these three Christmas poems to wish you
The spirit of Christmas which is joy
The hope of Christmas which is peace
And the heart of Christmas which is love.
James M. Gifford and the JSF staff
