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Maria
and Pablo lived in a tiny village
in Mexico. Because
Christmastime at their house did
not include many gifts, Maria and
Pablo looked forward to the
Christmas festival at the village
church with great joy and
anticipation. To honor the
birth of Christ, the church
displayed a beautiful manger that
drew crowds of admirers.
Villagers walked miles to admire
the manger, bringing lovely,
expensive gifts for the Baby
Jesus. As Maria and Pablo
watched the villagers place their
gifts in their soft hay around the
manger, they felt sad. They
had no money to buy gifts for
their family and no money to buy a
gift for the Baby Jesus.
One
Christmas Eve, Maria and Pablo
walked to the church for that
evening's services, wishing
desperately that they had a gift
to bring. Just then, a soft
glowing light shone through the
darkness, and the shadowy outline
of an angel appeared above them.
Maria
and Pablo were afraid, but the
angel comforted them, instructing
them to pick some of short green
weeds that were growing by the
road. They should bring the
plants to the church, the angel
explained, and place them near the
manger as their fit to the Baby
Jesus. Then just as quickly
as she had appeared, the angel was
gone, leaving Maria and Pablo on
the road looking up into the dark
sky. confused but excited,
the children filled their arms
with large bunches of the green
weeds and hurried to the church.
When
the children entered the church,
many of the villagers turned to
stare. As Maria and Pablo
began placing the weeds around the
manger, some of the villagers
laughed at them. "Why
are those children putting weeds
by the manger?" they asked
each other. Maria and Pablo
began to feel embarrassed and
ashamed of their gift to the Baby
Jesus, but they stood bravely near
the manger, placing the plants on
the soft hay, as the angel had
instructed.
Suddenly,
the dull green leaves on the tops
of the plants began to turn a
beautiful shade of red,
surrounding the Baby with
blooms. The laughing
villagers became silent as they
watched the green plants transform
into the lovely star-shaped
crimson flowers we call
poinsettias. As they watched
the weeds bloom before their
eyes. Maria and Pablo knew
they had no reason to be ashamed
anymore. The had given the
Baby Jesus the only gift they
could-and it was the most
beautiful gift of all.
Today
poinsettias are a traditional
symbol of Christmas, thanks to
young Maria and Pablo and their
special gifts to the Baby Jesus.
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