Poetry Contest Honorable Mention
Holy Night
Because one man thought pity no disgrace
(Perhaps he glimpsed my utter weariness
Or saw the worry in my Joseph’s face),
We have this welcome haven—humble, yes,
But elevated by that kindliness
Into a palace fit to house a king.
We shelter here as unexpected guests
Of sleepy beasts, and yet the night will bring
A royal visitor, a holy offering.
The earthy smells of byre and dusty hay,
The muted clamor from the crowded town
Are mingled, in a strangely fitting way,
With the supernal light that’s drifting down
From starlit skies. Anomalies abound,
And heaven’s interface with earth expands
And blurs, as One to whom is due a crown
Of light is wrapped, instead, in swaddling bands,
Entrusted by His Father to my mortal hands.
So, seraphim and shepherds both attend
To sing hosannas for a plan—divine
And more complete than I can comprehend—
Where justice, love, and mercy are aligned
In perfect peace. And little Son, it’s Thine
To realize this vast, eternal goal—
As man and God, fulfill the great design.
Though I am mother of Thy flesh, behold:
Thou shalt become the Father, Savior, of my soul!
Candace enjoyed her life growing up as an Air Force brat, reveling in exotic locales such as NYC, rural France, Okinawa, and Montgomery AL. She later atttended BYU, where she graduated in French Education and met her husband, John. Now in Ramona, California, Candy and John enjoy a life with fewer loads of laundry after raising six children and assisting in a cumulative seventy years worth of homework. She divides her time between family, Church service, creative writing, and long walks with her faithful Belgian Shepherd, Puma, who still doesn’t understand why Candy didn’t learn more at that obedience class a few years back.
