On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a Partridge in a Pear Tree. Celebrating the 12 days after Christmas day, this beloved Yuletide carol has been sung by young and old alike for centuries. The Partridge has been said to signify Jesus, whose birthday we celebrate on December 25, the first day of Christmas. Jesus is symbolically presented as a mother partridge that feigns injury to decoy predators from her helpless nestlings. "How often would I have sheltered you under my wings, as a hen does her chicks. . ." (Luke 13:34). The pear tree has been said to symbolize the cross at Calvary or the manger in the Bethlehem stable.

 

Also see the second in the series released in 2009 " Two Turtle Doves"