"Twas the night before Solstice, and all through the land,
the ACLU was watching to keep things in hand.
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
while forces kept Christmas out of their heads.
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my bed and heard desperate chatter.
Someone had seen my manger display,
And wailed very loudly, "Go away, go away."
How could I be so crass, so utterly wrong,
So show the infant Jesus and sing him a song?
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
An ACLU lawyer, looking stern and aloof.
"No manger! No caroling!" he said with a snort.
"And if you don't comply immediately, I'll take you to court!"
He was chubby and plumb, a right surly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him in spite of myself.
He dallied no more, but went straight to his phone,
Lamenting the manger, in a most pitiful moan.
But I, in the spirit, said nothing unkind,
Christmas is forgiveness, whatever you find.
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.
Christmas will survive, the folks will demand it,
Even if secular lawyers will not understand it.
Then I heard him exclaim, as he drove out of sight,
Happy Solstice to all, and to all a good night!"
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