The Children's Night
Maynard, Sarah Katherine
December 23, 1925 THE COMMONWEAL THE CHILDREN'S NIGHT By SARAH KATHERINE MAYNARD 187 IT WAS the afternoon of Christmas Eve, but there was not a Christmas tree in the whole town because it...
...And there were those who are born shy, but the name of the child who led them no one knows, since she was too shy to speak loud...
...Now outside the sky was white with the flutter of angels' wings, for above in heaven there was great excitement—all the millions of angels ready for the great event of the first Christmas night...
...I will get down," said Our Lady, "and let the poor ass rest...
...No preparation for Him...
...At a likely house he knocked...
...The town*is full...
...We will try the next house," said Saint Joseph...
...She's a good cow and gives sweet milk and she has mild eyes...
...of God would never be born again on the earth...
...No room, no room," laughed the man of the house...
...the air was filled with the scent of spring...
...The angels were going to come too, and a few saints and a sprinkling of grown-ups—but the myriads would be of children...
...They went out of the town a little way and as they were going a poor man followed them...
...And then he ran to tell the foxes, and they all cried together in joy and in sorrow—in sorrow because Our Lady had been refused by the town, and in joy because Our Lady was good...
...The mountains were covered with snow, the rivers were hard with ice and the wind came biting from the north...
...Other Christmas nights would come and the earth children would celebrate them with presents and trees, but the Son...
...Also the winds were coming, and the stars and the waves, and the birds led by the doves, and a herd of cows because of the good cow who had given up her bed to the Little Lord...
...but the night was passing, and when they had adored, the angels drew them away that the men of the earth might come now and see...
...Then Our Lady tried...
...May we come in...
...And at once the cow moved out of her bed where it was warm, and with her big soft nose she pushed the straw one way and another way until it looked like a baby's cradle, only that it had no covering...
...a great cleft was made in the heavens and down to earth floated the angels, singing and making music for their Infant King—for at that moment of transformation Christ was born a little child into Our Lady's lap...
...She trembled because soon now—very, very soon now—God was going to send her Our Lord, and how could she mother Him in the streets ? She had planned to have a warm room ready for Him and a pretty bed—and she found herself in the street...
...He spoke as quick as he could, without even a comma...
...Before morning God will have sent,His only Son...
...Many months before this cold day God had sent an angel to tell Our Lady to travel into Bethlehem at this time of the year that she might receive into her loving arms His only Son as a baby...
...The souls of the children were coming to the cow's, house to see and welcome the Child of God and Mary...
...In Bethlehem there was a fair...
...Oh, please let us in...
...Praise to God in the highest and on earth peace to men of goodwill...
...He had seen her by the street lamp and he knew that she was beautiful, that she was good—more so than any of God's creatures—and so he ran calling after her and Saint Joseph and the ass...
...The foxes are kind fellows...
...and other things were coming—the whole earth was coming...
...and when they had disappeared into the ground again, a tree grew up from the ant-hill full of roses, and in time that tree came to be called the Rosemary tree, or the Tree of the Roses of Mary—and for every child in the world named Rosemary there is a flower in bloom at Christmas time on that tree...
...The hill was steep and the poor ass panted with fatigue as he mounted stumbling against the icy wind...
...And as soon as the angels and the souls of the children had passed out of the house of gold it became once more the cow's house, with the good cow peacefully chewing the cud and the ass asleep in the stall and the Christ lying on common hay...
...He did not walk properly because he was lame in one leg, and he did not talk very well because the people of Bethlehem laughed when he talked, and so he always kept to himself and only spoke once or twice in the year...
...There were the children who are fatherless and motherless—they knelt closest to Our Lady...
...The landlord came at last...
...I have no home to offer to you...
...Nothing...
...It seemed hopeless...
...He could see she was not rich...
...It was growing late and they had yet to find a place in which to sleep for the night...
...Therefore, at the next house she stretched out her delicate hand and tapped at the door...
...They were on their way to Bethlehem, but not to the fair...
...Our Lady is here riding on a tired ass, and we have nowhere to shelter us from the cold this night...
...So she descended from the saddle and leaned against a rock that the ass might rest...
...When the ass had rested a little while, Our Lady mounted again and they moved on, but over so rough a road that it was night before they entered the town, where the streets were thronged with all the strangers who had come to Bethlehem for the fair...
...There was no wind now to blow a hurricane across Bethlehem...
...None of these people knew it was going to be Christmas night...
...He wrapped his cape around Our Lady, and then with stiffening hand he led the ass further down the street...
...Now while Our Lady was leaning against the rock the snow began to melt at her feet and the ants came struggling up from their winter holes, great processions of them, to kiss her shoes...
...It is God's will," said Saint Joseph...
...Saint Joseph knocked...
...These children and all the children of the world knelt at the cradle of the Infant Jesus...
...He eyed her with displeasure...
...No room here for people like you...
...So they went into a side street...
...there were no people in the streets now...
...And because it was nearly the middle of the night Our Lady and Saint Joseph did not sleep...
...Saint Joseph asked at every door, and now he only asked for shelter for Our Lady...
...Try the cow's house, dear Lady...
...Let us go out of the town a little way," said Saint Joseph...
...but he had to call loud because the blustering wind was full of noise...
...Moo," said the cow quietly...
...Hurry up what do you want hurry up I'm cold standing here...
...Someone calls us, Joseph," said Our Lady...
...asked the man of the house, poking his head through the window...
...They had only one ass between them and so Saint Joseph had to walk...
...This was what the angels sang...
...but all the while Saint Joseph watched the sky where the sun was already about to set...
...I want to say: try the cow's house...
...The ass and I can well remain outside...
...All was quiet...
...and that night they saw the Holy Child...
...They passed on...
...from every landlord...
...The tears were in her eyes...
...Shelter, pray, have you shelter for us...
...and again "moo-0000," which meant—"Oh certainly, come in and bring Our Lady...
...Then the tears flowed down Our Lady's cheeks, for there was nowhere else to go...
...She would never refuse you, good Lady...
...They waited, kneeling in prayer...
...I am not clever and so I live in the woods with the squirrels, and sometimes in the mountains with the foxes...
...They stood around the house of gold and sang in praise and joy, while the souls of the children passed within the doors...
...It's ice-cold out here, we can find no shelter, and this night God is sending—" i83 THE COMMONWEAL December 23, 1925"Now, now, don't bother me...
...Their eyes cannot see the things of the world, but they can see among the stars and through the curtain of blue into heaven...
...December 23, 1925 THE COMMONWEAL THE CHILDREN'S NIGHT By SARAH KATHERINE MAYNARD 187 IT WAS the afternoon of Christmas Eve, but there was not a Christmas tree in the whole town because it was the first Christmas Eve that had ever been on earth...
...The cow ceased to chew the cud and stumbled up to her feet...
...And a little boy led those who are born blind...
...The cow had no lights in her house but the stars shone through the open door...
...Soon the little procession of the ass, Saint Joseph and Our Lady came to the cow's house...
...Let us go by the side streets," said Saint Joseph, uor we shall be knocked down in the crowd...
...But the doors were slammed to before he had finished speaking...
...they always let me come in...
...Our Lady knew it was God's will, but nevertheless she wept...
...Let me try," she whispered to Saint Joseph...
...What now...
...Go away, go away, go away...
...I make good money tonight," and he jingled his pockets full of money and shut the window...
...Soon now you shall rest, good Lady," said Saint Joseph, knocking on the door of a house from whence came the noise of merry-making and the smell of heat...
...It was nearly the middle of the night...
...Now outside the town of Bethlehem Our Lady was journeying slowly over the hills with Saint Joseph...
...only Our Lady and Saint Joseph remained with Him...
...He followed Our Lady...
...Shelter we crave—," began Saint Joseph...
...asked Saint Joseph...
...Fear nothing from me, good Lady...
...He was a very old man with a long grey beard and wrinkles covering his face, but Our Lady was more beautiful than any fairy princess on this earth because she was the Queen of Heaven...
...No," roared the landlord, "go away...
...Only Our Lady and Saint Joseph knew...
...Only a poor man calls...
...May we come in, good cow...
...And this was to be the children's great night of triumph and therefore there was much to-do in Heaven, for it was the angels' duty to marshal the souls of the children into line...
...Suddenly the cow's house became transformed into a house of gold...
...The he kissed Our Lady's mantle and dropped behind, with her words of thanks whispering in his ears...
...The hair of the little boy who led them was white as snow because his soul belonged to those who are born blind...
...Moo," she said again, and moved away into a far corner of the stable and stood beside the ass...
...I call, I call," cried the follower...
...Try somewhere else...
...Go away...
Vol. 3 • December 1925 • No. 7
