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A Christmas Eve Wish For All the Children In Cape May County

By Owen Murphy * May no sound bom of night come hear your rooms; No serpent’s hiss, no bullfrog's startling croak; No blood-clawed owl's yell, nor shreak of •e&r Who, sightless, seek the horror dark invokes. For the Christmas moon has marshalled

myriad throngs. They gaze'Vhm deepest night with fond regard. - How caa our sleeping children come to wronc. »

When tonight, the very stars themselves'

stand guard.

Merry Christmas!

Owen Murphy writes fro'to Cape May

Court, House.

Prayer at Christmas

By Vlney Wilder Endicott Dear WOly Child whose presence blessed A stable long ago, Come enter in and be the guest Of hearts where hope burns low; Through us who kneel beside Thy bed This joyous Christmas Morn, A special benediction shed Where hearts arc hurt and tom. Dear Christ Child guide us by Thy star To those in need of care, , To little children near and far / Who crave the love we’d share; And help us make Thy message clear In all we do each day, ’Til Christmas comes again next year— In Thy Dear Name we pray. Vincy Wilder Endicott writes from Cape May Court House. J

MANGER SCENE — Lower Township Cub Scout Pack KH shows off their version of the manger scene in Saturday’# Township Rotary Parade.

By Clare Campbell*

I am so glad it was calm and clear The night that pur Little Lord came, So glad that the shepherds were able to

hear,

So glad they could see The Star flame!! Supose the wind had blown fierce and

wild

And storm clouds had blackened the

sky—

How could The Wise Men had found the

Child?

Suppose they had passed Him by.

A song is divine and its message true

When an angel'chorus sings.

We know that now. but the Shepherds

knew

Make Holiday Memorable For the Aging As a child, you anticipated the many delights of Christmas for weeks before the special day?* When that best of all possible days finally arrived — in good times and bad — somehow you were never disappointed. Merry lights always shone brightly on friends and family who gently held you . within the warm circle of their love. Over one million of our nation's elderly will spend Christmas in homes for the aging where caring staffs will strive to provide the joys of the Christmas season to these special Americaps.

When they saw opalescent wings. And because that night was cairn and

clear

Our star of faith never grows dim— It guides us along, year after year On the pathway that leads to jjim. 'Clare Campbell writes from Ocean

View.

But you can make this Christmas even more memorable for the aging. The New" Jersey Association of Non-Profit Homes for the'Aging urges you to visit the elderly. Like other providers of care for the aging, let them know you care too. Your gift of friendship will "btsamply returned, and in this gift you will sqrely discover the true spirit of Christma^T) ^

Admire Holly, But Keep Your Distance

By R. Leslie Chrismer "Blow, blow, thou winter wind! Thou art not so unkind As man's ingratitude; Thy tooth is not so keen. Because thou art ndt seen, Although thy breath.be rude. Heigh ho! sing, heigh ho! unto the green holly; Most friendship is feigning, most loving mere folly: Then, heigh ho, the holly! This life is most jolly. Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky! That dost not bite so neigh As benefits forgot; Though thou the waters warp, Thy sting is not so sharp As friend,remembered not. Heigh ho! sing, heigh ho! unto the green holly: Most friendship is feigning, most loving mere folly: Then, heigh ho, the holly! This life is most jolly."

am :an.

Shakespeare's choice of the holly on which to hang his bitter-sweet song (from "As You Like It”) is uncanny, unless knew that the holly tree, like life, has good points and bad — is beautiful but cai

be destructive.

Since such botanical knowledge on Shakespeare's part was unlikely, there is an element of the arcane in his selection of the holly to round out his ambivalent

poem.

Used froni ancient time as an evergreen symbolic of eternal life, particularly at the season of the year when existence was at its lowest ebb and there was celebration for the resurgent sun, tHe holly can also be an agent of death. All parts of it contain a poison, and the ingestion of any part of it can cause prompt and prolonged vomiting and diarrhea. The probable fatal dose for children is 20 to 30 berries. Perhaps the holly’s prickly leaves are one way of Nature’s saying: "Admire me, but keep your distance!" One of the holly’s great admirers was George Washington (noted himself for a very pricklish disposition) and some of the trees he planted at Mount Vernon are still growing there. Those Mount Vernon hollies are very Yld, indeed. But there are older ones. Perhaps New Jersey’s oldest native holly /(Ilex opaca) is the one opposite the / 22•8-milepost going north on the Garden State Highway. It is a beautifully shaped tree in a clearing which cSinbe reached from the nearby picnic grounds. Named for a botanist, it is known as the Shoemaker holly, and reliable naturalists believe it is about 350 years old. The holly is not used in medicine. But whb will deny the spiritual therapeutic value which a sprig of it can symbolize - > red being the badge of courage and green the color of hope. R. Leslie Chrismer writes from Cape > May.