Star of Bethlehem

It was the eve of Christmas
The snow lay deep and white
I sat beside my window
And looked into the night
I heard the church bells ringing
I saw the bright star shine
And childhood came again to me
With all its dreams divine
Then, as I listened to the bells
And watched the skies afar
Out of the east, majestical
There rose one radiant star
And every other star grew pale
Before that heavenly glow
It seemed to bid me follow
And I could not choose but go
And then, methought, ere faded
I rose as borne on wings
Beyond the waste of ruined lives
The press of human things
Above the toil and shadow
Above the want and woe
My old self and its darkness
Seemed left on earth below
And onward, upward shone the star
Until it seemed to me
It flashed upon the golden gate
And o'er the crystal sea
And then the gate rolled backward
I stood where angels trod
It was the star
The star of Bethlehem
Had led me up to God