My second favorite Christmas poem

...is "In the Bleak Midwinter" by Christina Rossetti (1830-1894). She wrote it in 1872:

In the Bleak Mid-Winter

In the bleak mid-winter
Frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron,
Water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
Snow on snow,
In the bleak mid-winter
Long ago.

Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him
Nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away
When He comes to reign:
In the bleak mid-winter
A stable-place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty,
Jesus Christ.

Enough for Him, whom cherubim
Worship night and day,
A breastful of milk
And a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him, whom angels
Fall down before,
The ox and ass and camel
Which adore.

Angels and archangels
May have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim
Thronged the air,
But only His mother
In her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the Beloved
With a kiss.

What can I give Him,
Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd
I would bring a lamb
, If I were a wise man
I would do my part,
Yet what I can I give Him,
Give my heart.

(end of poem)

According to Wikipedia, the poem has been set to music several times. Two settings, those by Gustav Holst and by Harold Darke, are popular and often sung as Christmas carols. Holst's is a hymn tune called Cranham, published in 1906 in The English Hymnal and simple enough to be sung by a congregation. Darke's is an anthem composed in 1909 and intended for a trained choir. In a 2008 poll of leading choirmasters and choral experts, Darke's version was named the best Christmas carol ever written.

Do yourself a favor; find both versions on YouTube and listen to them. I recommend Gloucester Cathedral choir for Holst's version and Kings College Cambridge choir for Darke's version. You'll be glad you did.

In the bleak midwinter

Almost midnight. Christmas Eve. Gloucester Cathedral.

Sublime.