Can We Talk 2

Family Nativity Enactment

         We have a large barn, or my niece does. There is one half door in a section, which could serve as an inn for our play. We-the grandfather, aunts, uncles, etc., want to use the children to act out the nativity scene in a mixture of truth and tradition. I have made angel wings, like June Cleaver did for the Beav, with silver cording to tie them on. I finally found some white tinsel to use as halo headbands. You get the idea. It's going to be an outdoor, homey, cold crude play with a long of winging it,

         I've written a narrative with directions for movement and spotlighting. Only the angels need to speak.We plan on doing each year. As they get older, more speaking parts will be introduced. We'll be able to adjust without rewriting as we add props and costumes. For now, the narrator tells the story, and people will go through the motions. We have some adults, and six kids. We could use more wise men and a King Herod. A woman is going to play Joseph with a party store beard.

         The audience will be small: a great grandfather, a few nana's, and maybe some others. We have electric lights for the roof of the barn, and a big electric star to put over the stable. I'm making a shepherd boy's robe out of upholstery fabric scraps.

         Afterwards, we'll have chili, hot cider, and Christmas cookies. Weather permitting, we'll eat in the barn with a heater and our hats and gloves. Or we'll go inside the house, but make it short. Our goal is to make it light-hearted and fun. We don't want it to be one more obligation or busy thing on the calendar. We want the kids to understand what Christmas means and to have a pleasant memory. And we want to enjoy it ourselves.