The Legend of the Poinsettia

Once again, I have fallen behind in my blogging. Hopefully, I will be more dedicated to this in the new year. Since we are only 4 more solid days away from Christmas festivities, I decided to write about the Christmas traditions and why we do things that way.

Todays blog will be The Legend of the Poinsettia:

Many years ago in Mexico, it was common to leave gifts for Jesus on the altar on Christmas Eve. Acording to legend, among a group of worshippers was a small boy, who had no money for a gift. Upset by this, he prayed outside one of the church windows. In this spot grew a beautiful red plant. In Mexico, this plant is called the "Flower of the Holy Night."

But how did this plant become know as the Poinsettia?
In 1825, the first American Ambassador to Mexico was Dr. Joel Roberts Poinsett. He was impressed by the beautiful plant and brought it to America, where it was renamed in his honor.

Fun fact: Encitas, California is the Poinsettia capital of the world because of the large number of Poinsettias there.