POEM: A Christmas in Chile, by Hrma Pasker

A Christmas in Chile

For me Christmas has always been what’s inside the box.
It has to be something well thought out, not just a pair of socks.
Christmas just wasn’t complete It there weren’t 30 gifts for me
They all had to be wrapped and neatly placed under our real Christmas tree.
The stockings that hung by the chimney with care weren’t just the normal size…
They had to be extra big, so various gifts could fit inside.


You can’t forget the lights and tree, the cooking there is to do.
Even with decorations put up there is still more left for you.
There are always more parties then there are days that you & the family can attend.
And when you get feeling the Christmas spirit, a helping hand you really should lend.
And don’t forget the Christmas cards you still have to write,
By this time half the month is over, December is almost out of sight.
The shopping, the gifting, all there is to do really can distract
And take away from the spirit and your Christmas like tact.

So to all you crazy Christmasers I once was one of you,
And then something happened to me that could happen to you too.
I spent Christmas without the gifts, the parities, lights, and even the tree
But what I quickly realized is those things don’t matter to me.
You can do Christmas without the decorations, you can do it without the snow.
You can even feel the Christmas spirit with not one party to throw.

You see I’ll spend this Christmas with something else in mind.
This Christmas I’m His servant, all the rest I’ll leave behind.
I imagine for one second I was the one who saw the star,
Or one of the three wisemen who brought gifts and traveled far.
Or would I be the Innkeeper that turned them both away?
Only to send the Savior to be laid in a manger full of hay.

So this Christmas that I’ll have without the normal things
He will help me remember truly the wonders this holiday brings.
I am so blessed to be the one to tell all that I see
I know I have a Savior and tell them what He’s done for me.
This Christmas is a special one because I will wear His name
And share with all the message that years ago this day our Savior came.

By Hermana Tiffany Pasker,
Dec 2008, Chile Santiago North Mission