Star Over Bethlehem: Christmas Stories and Poems. Agatha Christie

up very carefully and give him good religious instruction, for it is education that counts. He shall work in the shop and go with us to the Synagogue on the Sabbath and keep all the Feasts and the Purifications.’

      Looking in the manger, he said:

      ‘See, our son is smiling . . .’

      And indeed the boy was smiling and holding out tiny hands to his mother as though to say ‘Well Done.’

      But aloft in the vaults of blue, the Angel was quivering with pride and rage.

      ‘To think that I should fail with a foolish, ignorant, woman! Well, there will come another chance. One day when He is weary and hungry and weak . . . Then I will take him up to the top of a mountain and show him the Kingdoms of this World of mine. I will offer him the Lordship of them all. He shall control Cities and Kings and Peoples . . . He shall have the Power of causing wars to cease and hunger and oppression to vanish. One gesture of worship to me and he shall be able to establish peace and plenty, contentment and good will – know himself to be a Supreme Power for Good. He can never withstand that temptation!’

      And Lucifer, Son of the Morning, laughed aloud in ignorance and arrogance and flashed through the sky like a burning streak of fire down to the nethermost depths. . . .

      In the East, three Watchers of the Heavens came to their Masters and said:

      ‘We have seen a Great Light in the Sky. It must be that some great Personage is born.’

      But whilst all muttered and exclaimed of Signs and Portents a very old Watcher murmured:

      ‘A Sign from God? God has no need of Signs and Wonders. It is more likely to be a Sign from Satan. It is in my mind that if God were to come amongst us, he would come very quietly....’

      But in the Stable there was much fun and good company. The ass brayed, and the horses neighed and the oxen lowed, and men and women crowded in to see the baby and passed him from one to the other, and he laughed and crowed and smiled at them all.

      ‘See,’ they cried. ‘He loves everybody! There never was such a Child. . . .’

       A Wreath for Christmas

      When Mary made a Holly wreath

      The blood ran red – ran red.

      Another Mary wove the Thorns

      That crowned her Master’s head.

      But the Mistletoe was far away

      Across a Western sea,

      And the Mistletoe was wreathed around

      A Pagan Apple Tree.

      In Glastonbury grew a Thorn,

      When Joseph came to trade.

      And the Holly Bush was common growth

      In every wooded glade.

      But the Mistletoe was sacred where

      The Sun arose each morn,

      And the Mistletoe knew nothing of

      The Babe in Bethlehem born.

      Saint Patrick sailed the stormy seas

      To preach the Cross – and so

      He found Eve’s Tree – with serpent coiled –

      And hung with Mistletoe.

      ‘I bid thee, Serpent, leave this Land,

      And open, Plant, thine ears.’

      He preached the Tale of Christ – and Lo!

      The Mistletoe wept tears. . . .

      The Holly bush has berries red,

      Blood-red upon each bough.

      The Thorn it blooms with golden flowers,

      And Kissing’s fashion now.

      What will you give to Christ the Lord?

      O! Pagan Bough so green?

       ‘The Tears that I have shed for One

       Whom I have never seen . . .’

      Let Man then give his life for Man,

      The blood-red berries say,

      And Men have love for fellow men,

      Where Gorse flowers bloom so gay.

      And the Tears of Man be shed for Man

      Where Mistletoe gleams white.

      Come, pity, love and sacrifice....

       God bless us all this night!

      The Naughty Donkey

      Once upon a time there was a very naughty little donkey. He liked being naughty. When anything was put on his back he kicked it off, and he ran after people trying to bite them. His master couldn’t do anything with him, so he sold him to another master, and that master couldn’t do anything with him and also sold him, and finally he was sold for a few pence to a dreadful old man who bought old worn-out donkeys and killed them by overwork and ill treatment. But the naughty donkey chased the old man and bit him, and then ran away kicking up his heels. He didn’t mean to be caught again so he joined a caravan that was going along the road. ‘Nobody will know who I belong to in all this crowd,’ thought the donkey.

      These people were all going up to the city of Bethlehem, and when they got there they went into a big Khan full of people and animals.

      The little donkey slipped into a nice cool stable where there was an ox and a camel.The camel was very haughty, like all camels, because camels think that they alone know the hundredth and secret name of God. He was too proud to speak to the donkey So the donkey began to boast. He loved boasting.

      ‘I am a very unusual donkey,’ he said, ‘I have foresight and hindsight.’

      ‘What is that?’ said the ox.

      ‘Like my forelegs – in front of me – and my hind legs – behind me.Why, my great great, thirty-seventh time great grandmother belonged to the Prophet Balaam, and saw with her own eyes the Angel of the Lord!’

      But the ox went on chewing and the camel remained proud.

      Then a man and a woman came in, and there was a lot of fuss, but the donkey soon found out that there was nothing to fuss about, only a woman going to have a baby which happens every day. And after the baby was born some shepherds came and made a fuss of the baby – but shepherds are very simple folk.

      But then some men in long rich robes came.

      ‘V.I.P.s,’ hissed the camel.

      ‘What’s that?’ asked the donkey.

      ‘Very Important People,’ said the camel, ‘bringing gifts.’

      The donkey thought the gifts might be something good to eat, so when it was dark he began nosing around. But the first gift was yellow and hard, with no taste, the second made the donkey sneeze and when he licked the third, the taste was nasty and bitter.

      ‘What stupid gifts,’ said the donkey, disappointed. But as he stood there by the Manger, the baby stretched out his little hand and caught hold of the donkey’s ear, clutching it tight as very young babies will.

      And than a very odd thing happened. The donkey didn’t want to be naughty any more. For the first time in his life he wanted to be good. And he wanted to give the baby a gift – but he hadn’t anything to give. The baby seemed to like his ear, but the ear was part of him – and then another strange idea came to him. Perhaps he could give the baby himself....

      It was not very long after that that Joseph came in with a tall stranger. The stranger was speaking urgently to Joseph, and as the donkey stared at them he could hardly believe his eyes!