December President’s Pen with Preston Kendall

Dec 25, 2022 | President’s Pen

Two days before Christmas and all through the school
Not a creature was present, I felt like a fool.

The work-study vans were all parked in a row
Under our new canopy and out of the snow.

I pass empty classrooms as I walk down the hall,
Whatever happened to that season called Fall?

The desks are all clean and exams are all through.
No one will be back ’til Semester number two.

The bulletin boards still announce former events
Like food drives, retreats all now in past tense.

In the chapel the altar is covered in roses
Above them a portrait of La Virgen reposes:

Our mass for the feast of Guadalupe was great,
The skit of her appearance was really first rate.

Las Posadas’ inn doors propped against a lunch table –
José y María at last found the stable.

Sometimes silence and solitude can be a gift…
Stepping back from the action can give you a lift,

Like thinking of people who make our lives better
Teachers, students, and YOU changing the world together.

There are angels among us regardless of wings
Christmas invites us to find our God in all things

God with us and for us, loves all that we are
And invites us, in joy, to follow His star.

To shine in the darkness, be people for others,
To live on this Earth like sisters and brothers.

May you keep Christmas always in your minds and your hearts
And we’ll see you again when another year starts.

The divine became human on Christmas Day;
God’s love calls us to love.  ¡Viva Cristo Rey!