"We came to see the Messiah," one of the shepherds stammered.
The baby cried. The animals munched their food.
There was some explaining to do. The shepherds told the story of what had happened in the field.
The young man beside the manger did not have anything very exciting to tell the shepherds.
"My name," he said, "is Joseph. This is my wife Mary. We used to live here in Bethlehem, but no one remembers us now. I've been working in Galilee for years. I have a carpenter shop there. The only reason we came back to Bethlehem was to have our names entered in the government records.
"We got here only yesterday. We tried to get a room in the inn, but there wasn't any room for us with all the important people here. They said we could sleep in the stable. The baby came tonight. Here he is, if you would like to see him."
The shepherds looked at the baby. They hoped that they would see something unusual about him, but he looked just like any other baby.
Then they remembered the angels' song.
Outside again, the shepherds looked up and saw a faint gray light streaking the blackness in the east. Morning was coming. Soon the people of the countryside would be getting up.