December 8

…And so at last diplomacy had failed.
The armies bristled, eager to collide;
A few collaborative traitors wailed
For peace, but mostly, others did not heed.
Peace, after all, was far less interesting;
"Besides," they said, "Our God is on our side --
We'll see Him come, the prophets guaranteed --
And all those new bombs need a good excuse for testing."


The heady first advance was soon repelled,
Vast colonies exchanged and planets riven;
Then came the day the mother ship was felled,
And city after city turned to pyre.
The pods filled with the lucky ones to fly,
The mines were set, the fateful order given;
Some poor obedient flunky pulled the wire
And swift galactic fire blossomed in the sky.


Across the barren dark sped one frail flitter.
"There is no God -- or else He does not hear."
The fuel ran short, the accusations bitter;
Hope faded, and the final few did blunder
Toward an unfamiliar planet far;
There, dying in the alien atmosphere,
Heard "Christ is born" -- the angel song like thunder
As Earthlings gazed in wonder at the bright new star.

~~~ End of Part 1. ~~~