But when the Child was born in Bethlehem, since Joseph could not find a lodging in that village, he took up his quarters in a certain cave near the village; and while they were there Mary brought forth the Christ and placed Him in a manger, [source]
Another census
and nomadic rout.
From the Galilee
two Judeans, man
and wife, confirming
lines of ancestry
Into Bethlehem
they pass, recorded
by the gatekeepers.
Some mendicants mark
their climb to the lines
of old dwelling caves
Here they rest as guests
house room ’til such time
her birth pangs begin.
Neighbours gather round
kinswomen look on
and the men retreat
Hooves stamp the stone floor
where she lies and cries
among kin and kine
a straw bed bloodied
her clean blue mantle
to swaddle the babe
Many have observed
this firstborn, boy child.
Herders from the hills
Eastern stargazers
Messianic rune
readers of the text 1
This is their tableau.
They do not see us
witnessing through days
of dark December
gazing evermore
upon that portent.
- see Micah 5: 2-4 ↩︎
For my MTB prompt: Picture this in Six we are writing the Tableau poetry style of 5 syllables per line, 6 lines per verse. A tableau being a carefully composed scene in which characters are entirely oblivious to the viewer. In this seasonal Nativity poem I have aimed to highlight this effect.
PoetryPix 