An Unexpected Gift

Thoughts danced inside my head
Dreaming of all St. Nick would bring;
I tossed and turned till like a shot
Bolted straight up from the bedsprings.

Snuck to the staircase down the hall
Excitement bubbled with each creak;
Hoping these steps would surely lead
To Christmas treasures I did seek.

But it was not the man in red
Which caught my eye upon descent;
Behold instead an open book
Unknown it held what Christmas meant.

I grabbed a cookie and some milk
Plopped on the floor beneath our tree;
Immersed myself inside each page
Like it was written just for me.

Twas bout a mother and her child
The Great One born on Christmas Day;
His name given Immanuel
This son of God to whom would save.

I sat and read of Him all night
As dawn broke drifted off to sleep;
Amid slumber on Christmas morn
My heart beat of His joy and peace.

You see that night so long ago
Shaped of the course I took in life;
Found in an unexpected gift
Was born my love of Jesus Christ.

This poem was a finalist in the December 2021 poetry contest