The Christmas Rose
An Advent Story Calendar
Day Twenty-four
Mary’s fiancé Joseph, from Nazareth in Galilee, had to participate in the census in the same way everyone else did. Because he was a descendant of King David, his ancestral city was Bethlehem, David’s birthplace. Mary, who was now late in her pregnancy that the messenger Gabriel had predicted, accompanied Joseph. While in Bethlehem, she went into labor and gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped the baby in a blanket and laid Him in a feeding trough because the inn had no room for them. Luke 2:4-7
Dora began, “Last week after our Arctic Animal reports, my teacher let me push the cart back to the library. I used my regular muscles for that. When I got to the library, there was a display of new books. One of the books was The Christmas Rose!”
“Honestly?” asked Joe.
“Yes! I took it out and read it over the weekend. It’s the same legend but the name of the shepherd girl isn’t Madelon. You’ll never guess what it is!” She pulled the book from her backpack and held it out to Joe. The beautifully painted cover showed a young girl holding a bouquet of Christmas roses before an infant lying in the straw.*
Dora opened the book and began to read, “Dorothy had three brothers, tall and strong, shepherd giants who guarded their father’s sheep. At least they were giants to her.”*
Dora stopped. “The shepherd girl’s name is Dorothy!”
Joe chuckled, “That’s almost your name!”
“That is my name! My name is Dorothy but my family calls me Dora because my grandmother is Dorothy too.”
Joe sat up straight. “Dorothy was my wife’s, my Darling Rose’s, name too!”
“It says in the book that Dorothy means gift from God,” Dora said.
“So true!” said Joe. “My Darling Rose was a gift from God and so are you.”
“So Madelon gave the gift of roses to the baby when she was already a gift.”
“And the baby Jesus was a gift to us all,” said Joe. “Now let me play you the special song.”
Rose History: Legends, songs, and poems written about the beauty of roses remind us of the love they represent. The 30,000 varieties of roses in the world represent of the variety in God’s love.
Rose Hues: The Peace Rose, a well-known hybrid, has large flowers of cream and yellow, the edges tinged with pink. It was named Peace to commemorate the end of World War II.
Prayer: Father of all, bring us together in peace. Amen
*(The Legend of the Christmas Rose by William Hooks. Paintings by Richard A. Williams 1999)
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