In the Dead of Winter

In the dead of winter

midway between the solstice and the equinox

the light of Christmas and the gloom of Lent

remember trees give wood

for crèches, cradles, crosses, crucifixes

(a crucifix was called a “tree”)

Jesus’ Tree took His life and gave us His

On it He died
in a Cradle He was a newborn

The Tree points back to the Cradle

Man owed God a debt

A man had to pay it because Man owed it

God had to pay it because it was owed to God
so God became Man
He was born to die

The upright goes from earth to heaven

The crossbar reaches all space and time

Jesus’ "tree" is the center of all things.