I was a newly wed ministerial student with a small income. We scraped together enough money for a poster board nativity scene in the front window. that's all we had but we were proud of it.

Married just a few months
Christmas drawing near
Student pastor’s salary
Finances were austere
Decorations out of reach
We could cut a cedar tree
But a barren evergreen
Was not a sight to see
A pattern in a hobby book
For a wooden nativity
Gave me a big idea
Of a project nearly free
A piece of poster board
Just plain white will do
We cut out the silhouette
Of Joseph and Mary, too
The manger scene was soon cut out
And scotch taped to the glass
Of our big picture window
For everyone who’d pass
Pull the shade and set a lamp
To outline this event
Mary and husband Joseph
And the baby who was sent
To all the lowly of the earth
To the rich and to the poor
And this handmade project
Became a priceless décor
When school was over
And income finally grew
This homemade simple scene
Was there for all to view
Although we had bright lights
And decorations galore
It was a yearly reminder
Of those precious years before