Christmas Tears

The day re­turns by which we date our years:

Day of the joy of giv­ing—that means love;

Day of the joy of liv­ing—that means hope;

Day of the roy­al Child—and day that brings

To old­er hearts the gift of Christ­mas tears!

Look

how the cand­les twin­kle through the tree

The child­ren shout when ba­by claps his hands

The room is full of laugh­ter and of song!

Your lips are smil­ing

dear­est—tell me why

Your eyes are brim­ming full of Christ­mas tears?

Was it a si­lent voice that joined the song?

A van­ished face that glim­mered once again

Among the hap­py cir­cle round the tree?

Was it an un­seen hand that touched your cheek

And brought the sec­ret gift of Christ­mas tears?

Not dark and an­gry like the win­ter storm

Of self­ish grief—but full of star­ry gleams

And soft and still that oth­ers may not weep—

Dews of re­mem­bered hap­pi­ness des­cend

To bless us with the gift of Christ­mas tears.

Ah

lose them not

dear heart—life has no pearls

More pure than me­mo­ries of joy love-shared.

See

while we count them one by one with pray­er

The heav­en­ly hope that lights the Christ­mas tree

Has made a rain­bow in our Christ­mas tears!