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Swaddling Clothes
by Bruce W Niedt
They say in ancient days that swaddling clothes
Were sheets that one wrapped round ones fragile frame
When traveling, especially for those
So poor they would be buried in the same
Rags they walked in, had they not some garment
Underneath, in which to be interred, should
They die on the road. Such was her intent:
One mother, young, who fled with her good
Husband, who bound her newborn baby tight,
Who placed him in a makeshift bed, a bin
Of hay, not knowing hed survive the night,
And she would live to see him shrouded once again.
There could not be a much more humble birth,
But for a star that hung above the earth.
12/02/2001 Posted on 12/02/2001
Copyright © 2024 Bruce W Niedt
| Member Comments on this Poem |
| Posted by Mary Ellen Smith on 12/25/04 at 05:58 AM This is wonderful Bruce...highlighting the humbleness which He came into willingly. Thank you for this. |
| Posted by Kristina Woodhill on 12/26/07 at 03:47 PM Well done for the contest and a fine POTD! |
| Posted by Quentin S Clingerman on 12/26/07 at 10:29 PM Excellent. Perhaps POTD because it won the contest. Indeed deserved the honor! |
| Posted by Michelle Angelini on 12/26/07 at 10:36 PM Congratulations on POTD! (and winning 3rd place in the contest) What I love about this poem is the dual message of the spiritual and historical aspect of swaddling clothes. The tragic beauty of Christ's birth means something incredible to those of us who believe. You brought us to that day two thousand years ago when a humble birth meant eternal life.
~Chelle~ |
| Posted by Kathleen Wilson on 12/27/07 at 01:52 AM This poem is elegant, and with such humble yet heightened imagery. That alone makes it beautiful. It flows into form seemingly effortlessly and yet with fine and creative craft. |
| Posted by Laurie Blum on 12/29/07 at 09:16 PM Beautiful and simple, straight to the very heart of Christmas! |
| Posted by Chris Sorrenti on 12/31/07 at 04:13 PM Beautifully worded reminder Bruce. I especially like how it starts with the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes then comes full circle at the end with the shroud. |
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