However, in Hawaii there are still those who say it just doesn’t seem like Christmas without the snow. Obviously, you cannot please everyone.
I remember telling our children when they were little in Hawaii that Baby Jesus had palm trees not snowmen, but they were not buying it. That is when I decided to be in charge of the base chapel’s first living nativity.
I thought it would be so easy in the tropics. The costuming and set came together quite well, but, the animals were another issue. There was only one dairy farm on the island and they were not lending out their Holsteins. Donkeys and sheep were non-existent, so we had to be creative.
Someone volunteered a horse from the base stables, and some chickens, which we had on tethers to keep them from roaming. We discovered a little farm with goats, but when I finally caught the owner at home, the goats were gone. They had been purchased for holiday luaus. Uh oh! We accepted his offer of an old Billy Goat with big curved horns and a white beard.
Finally, in desperation, we accepted two very fluffy poodles as sheep. As long as the shepherds held them, they would pass as sheep. The owner assured us they were not barkers. I heard that there were camels on the island, but I was never able to locate them. The zoo acted like I’d made a crank call.
We learned a lot that first year. The horse was too excited by the crowd of 300 sitting on grass mats and lawn chairs and ended up back in the trailer. The goat kept trying to butt the angels, so he ended up on a leash. The barefooted angels had to walk a semicircle to get around him, which put them in the middle of a patch of sand spurs.
Scripture does not tell of the shepherds rescuing crying angels and carrying them to the stable, but it was great entertainment for our crowd. The next year the angels wore flip flops.
Every year the production got better. We used commanders from the base for wisemen and the newest parents with a baby as the holy family. Our last year there, my husband and I were honored to portray Mary and Joseph and our 3-week-old baby Erin was Baby Jesus.
She was adorable, but she cried.
Years later when we moved here, the kids wanted me to organize a Living Nativity at Knob Prairie Church in Enon, but the challenges were very different.
No need for fluffy white poodles in Ohio. We had cows, sheep, pigs and living goats. The stable looked like a 4-H building at the fair. We still had no camel, but we did get a reluctant donkey. One of the wise men rode a well-behaved Arabian horse.
Problem was it was near zero and the ground was covered with a heavy layer of snow. All our actors looked very well-fed with their coats under their costumes. Angels attached their halos to ear muffs. One year when it wasn’t too cold, our granddaughter portrayed Baby Jesus, but generally we had to use a doll because it was too cold for babies.
On the positive side, we had no problem with the sand spurs. And the angels wore boots, anyway. The event was a big success, and after a few years I retired from directing the Nativity play.
This year our youngest daughter Erin is on the staff at First Christian Church in Springfield, which just presented a Hometown Christmas. It was lovely, but I just haven’t quite recovered from what I saw there.
Part of the program was a Living Nativity with live camels. Camels. And they had outdoor heaters to keep everyone warm.
Our 2-year-old grandson was so excited by the display he broke away from his Mama and ran up to give Mary a high five.
I’m excited to see another generation enthusiastic about Christmas programs, even though I am very jealous of those live camels.
And so I’ve decided I don’t need snow for Christmas. If the snow stays until Christmas I will enjoy it, but if it melts I think Christmas will still happen. The celebration is, after all, in our hearts.
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