[Editor: A poem by Mary Hannay Foott. Published in The Warwick Argus, 21 December 1897.]
The Christmas Angel.
Through skies of midnight swift he swept,
His earthward voyage holding —
Our year-long exile — whilst we slept
His wings besides as folding.
O Christmas, ere thy garments bright
O’er Western clouds are trailing,
Through farther heavens lies thy flight,
O’er other lands thou ’rt sailing.
Thou art ONE DAY for us and them :
Together, though asunder,
Are they who hold the raiment hem
And they thy drawn-smile under !
To lands by blue hills shut from us,
By wild seas separated,
Remember, whilst thou easiest thus,
Thou goes’t not unfreighted.
When thou shalt see, in festal ring,
Dimmed eyes and lips that quiver
For “Absent Friends” recalled, then bring,
Sweet memories — then, if ever.
When thou shalt hear, if we are blest,
Our names in kindness spoken,
Breathe blessings from our hearts, to rest
On them that give the token.
Any when thy twelvemonth’s rest is given
Again, dear Lotus-eater,
And for thy entering back to Heaven
Thou summonest St. Peter.
Bear with thee, through the shining door,
The message now we falter —
If world-light wane not quite before
The glory of the Altar —
If any word of ours may reach
The Happy, for the setting
Of added happiness on each,
Say for us — “Unforgetting.”
Mary Hannay Foott.
Source:
The Warwick Argus (St. Lucia, Qld.), Tuesday 21 December 1897, page 7
The Institute of Australian Culture
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