A crib stands on the bookcase
in our living room.
It looks ramshackle,
draughty and cold
but it’s fit for the purpose
for which it was built –
to house animals.

Beside a cow, a donkey
and some sheep
Mary and Joseph kneel
and a shepherd boy stands.
Oblivious to the cold and dirt,
the people gaze at the baby Jesus
who is lying in the manger,
content.

This year I have felt drawn to the crib
in a way that I haven’t been
since childhood.
For the whole of Advent
the baby Jesus was missing
and I missed his presence keenly.

At Christmas vigil Mass
I sensed My God
asking me a question.
His question was not,
“Do you feel
that you have prepared thoroughly enough
to receive the baby Jesus
in your life?”
Neither was his question,
“Do you deserve the baby Jesus
in your life?”
The question was simply,
“Claire, are you willing
to welcome the baby Jesus
in your life?”

When I answered, “Yes!”
with eyes shining,
My God smiled
and whispered in my ear,
“Claire,
I’ll let you into a wee secret;
he’s been there all along!”

© Claire Murray