A Lifetime of Christmas Poetry
My mom, Raynette Forister Eitel, passed away in September of 2022, age
85, drifting away into dementia. It was tragic to watch this woman who loved
words, who was a poet and teacher, fade away into wordlessness after a lifetime
of crafting poetry.
Mom had a tradition of writing a new Christmas poem each year and
sending it to friends and relatives. The mailing list grew each year, and
people always told us they looked forward to mom’s Christmas poems. She
published some in a couple little books. There are too many to post just once a
day during the month of December, but I’ll choose some of the best.
The Story of Love
by Raynette Eitel
Love came, radiant as a star,
Innocent as an infant,
Soft as a song in the night
Sung by heavenly hosts.
Love walked on troubled waters,
Turned water to wine,
Turned fishes and loaves to a feast,
And blind eyes were opened.
Yet someone spit on Love,
Hung Love on a cross,
Put Love in a tomb;
But Love would not die.
Now Love sits at the right hand
Of the Father
And shines in the eyes of children,
In candles set in windows,
In branches of my tree,
In my heart—
Still radiant as a star,
And warm as the noonday sun.
Writing Rhetorically 