The Legend of the Poinsettia
Maria and her brother, pablo, always kept the spirit of Christmas in their hearts
and looked forward to the holiday.
During the Christmas festival, a time of great parties and candlelit parades, a magnificent manger scene was set up in their tiny village church. Everyone in the village made special gifts for the baby Jesus, such as blankets and shoes. The children wished that they could offer a gift in honor of Jesus, but they were very poor and had nothing to give.
As they set out for church on Christmas eve, they picked green plants along the roadside to give to baby Jesus.
When they arrived at church, the other villagers laughed at them, saying the plants were weeds. But as the
children placed the plants around the baby's manger, something wonderful happened...the weeds turned into stunning star-like
flowers with bright red petals.
At once, the church grew silent as everyone bowed their heads in honor of the miracle before them. All remembered the first Christmas when a single star appeared in the sky to proclaim Jesus' birth, the most wonderful gift of love that the world has ever received.
From that day on, the villagers have decorated their homes with poinsettia blossoms, which they've come to associate with the gifts of love, hope, and Christmas miracles.
And they never forgot the lesson the children had taught them--that the most beautiful gifts we receive come from the heart.
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Wishing you a Christmas with wonderful things,
with gifts of love that make the heart sing.
Merry Christmas!
"The Legend of the Poinsettia," retold by Bobette Bryan, © 2010
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