MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

"Christmas in Arizona"

The visitor sadly shook his head
As he basked in the tropical sun;
"Call this Christmas?" to us he said,
"Well, not where I come from!"

Christmas needs snow and ice and cold,
And the sound of sleigh bells ring;
And as for me, I can't be sold
On this winter that feels like spring."

We looked at him and then we smiled
As he scoffed aloud at our "plight":
And we felt pity and were not riled
'Cause he was so far from right!

For no snow fell on Bethlehem
On the night the star first shone,
There was neither blizzard nor howling gale,
That swept with a shriek and a moan.

The breeze was soft, and what is more
The night the Christ Child came,
The Hibiscus bloomed near the stable door,
As Mary murmured His Name.

Bougainvillea of violet hue
Arched in graceful bower,
Poinsettias, wet with midnight dew,
Enhanced that sacred hour.

The heavenly Host in the starry sky
Proclaimed the birth of the King;
And the rustling palms echoed the cry,
As the whole Earth seemed to sing.

So we find here in our sun-drenched land.
Untouched by the ice and snow.
That the Spirit of Christmas is near at hand
And we feel God willed it so.

--Anonymous