What if there had been a wall at Egypt? 

What if our holy family wasn’t able to get through? 

Would pursuit by the angry king 

    have meant the infant’s offering, long before it was due? 

What would have happened if immigration was metered - 

    young Mary, without enough diapers for the stay?

Would violence have found them on the border,

     as they were left with no hope but to wait?

What if asylum was sought but never granted?

What if back to Bethlehem they had to go? 

Would the infant have met the fate of others,

     a detail of tragedy, our real loss unknown?

What if that flight to Egypt had ended,

    with barricades and militarized police?

Would we have ever known that heaven opened,

    that God came to live among the least?

What if Love is born today across the border?

If it happened once, why assume not again?

And when her parents carry her to freedom,

    who will be the ones to let her in?