The Christmas Story

 

“In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled…3 And all went to be enrolled, each to his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. 6  And while they were there, the time came for her to be delivered. 7  And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

     8  And in that region there were shepherds out in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. 9  And an angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filed with fear. 10  And the angel said to them, ‘Be not afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will come to all people; 11  for to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12  And this will be a sign for you: you will find the babe wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger,” 13  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

14  ‘Glory to God in the highest,

                  and on earth peace among men with
                       whom he is pleased.’”

                                            (Revised Standard Version Luke 2:1, 3-14)

Life on the Prairie

Merry Christmas everyone!  Our blog has a different format this week. We each wrote a short piece about Christmas. We hope during this busy season each of you takes time to reflect on the birth of Jesus and the true meaning of Christmas. We hope, too, that you enjoy fellowship with family and friends. We will be back on the prairie for our next post. It will feature Emily, the Kind Suffragette and will post the first week of January. 

My Christmas List

                                                                                                            By Judy

Each Christmas many hours are spent writing lists. I write “to do” list after “to do” list. I enjoy crossing completed items off the list.  I try not to think about the items I constantly move forward to the next day’s list. I make lists of presents to give my children, grandchildren and friends. Children list toys they wish Santa to bring. Santa, of course, keeps his “naughty or nice” list. This year, I made a Christmas list of what I want.

Happiness is on my list. How wonderful our world would be if everybody was happy. I especially wish the people I know happiness. When my children were young and still at home I really wanted them to be happy early in the morning. I’m not necessarily a real morning person, and I didn’t expect smiles and laughter. I just didn’t want grumpy, negative attitudes expressed before I had my coffee. However, now that my children are on their own, I miss those grunted “mornin’” greetings.

I put world peace on my list. Many people will gather for Christmas this year with a son or daughter absent, serving our country so we here in America might live in peace. Families in war torn countries call refugee camps home and are separated from family members. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if simply putting world peace on a list to Santa brought about world peace? “Treat others as you would like to be treated” might be a better place to start.

Food, clothing and shelter for everyone are on my list. The problem is in the logistics. How does Santa get the clothing from my overcrowded closet to all those short women who need sweaters and jeans? How do the leftovers in my fridge get to the starving child in Africa? One of my sons once asked me “where do the people who have no houses sleep when it is cold?” This is a tough request for Santa. It is easy for me to say “I’ll pray for food, clothing and shelter for everyone,” and I do. Still I shop for the perfect Christmas sweater. I decorate the Christmas tree and string greenery throughout my warm, comfortable home. I bake a ham…turkey…pies…cakes, and I make fudge and caramel popcorn. It is not as easy to clean my closet, work in a soup kitchen or shelter the homeless. Hmmm, this might be an item for me to work on achieving rather than asking Santa.

Patience is on my list, too. I would like more patience for store clerks waiting on customers as well as patience for teachers of children waiting on Santa. Drivers need patience, too, particularly those driving on the same highway as I. Mothers and fathers need patience, and perhaps even a certain Nana I’m very familiar with could use a little more patience once in a while.

An extra hour of time each day is on my list, or maybe I should put the ability to manage time better on my list? Either would help I believe, especially if I used it to accomplish some of the other items on this list. If I spent just one extra hour with a lonely person during this busy season, it might be a blessing to that person as well as to me. That one hour, too, might be a start to accomplishing other items on this list. I wish you all a Christmas filled with love and happiness.

Storyteller's Corner

“Tis the Season…”

                                                           by Collette

When my family’s greenhouse operation was up and running, the weeks before the holidays through Christmas Eve were frantic and filled with long, arduous days. Invariably sometime between Thanksgiving and the Sunday following, there was some kind of weather event. If we lost electrical power due to an ice storm, a greenhouse full of poinsettias was damaged in a matter of minutes. Many times we used a gasoline tractor hooked up to a generator to keep the houses warm. We utilized a snow blower to remove snow along the edges of the houses. Ropes were slid back and forth on either side of each building to remove heavy snows from the tops of the plastic covered hoop houses.

In the beginning when my husband was still learning about the growth of the plants, we did have a problem or two. We had a request for a particular variety of poinsettia that first year. Although gorgeous plants, these flowers needed to be planted very early in the season because ours did not bloom until Valentine’s Day that year. Thankfully, we never experienced that accident again.

Moving them out and transporting them was the biggest headache of all. In the beginning we used a green utility van to move them to various shops. Unfortunately, its heater was not as good as it should have been. I remember insulating the cargo door with blankets and old bed spreads to keep the north wind from freezing the plants. When my husband had to wear insulated coveralls, boots and gloves while driving, we knew we might be in trouble. He had to break ice off the door to remove them when he got to his destination, and we lost several pots of flowers.

Returning from a trip to Wichita on the old 96 Highway during an ice storm, a semi-tractor trailer stalled at the bottom of one of the many hills on that road. Each time the driver tried to go up the hill, he slid back down to the bottom. Eventually there was quite a lone of vehicles behind him (including our van) waiting to ascend. This was before cell phones, so I kept up on my husband’s progress with a “cb radio” because they were stuck there long enough to worry about whether he might run out of gas.

Despite the travails involving the weather, the beauty of the houses filled with blooming poinsettias was breath-taking. Being able to decorate churches in our area (many times donating the flowers) was such a fulfilling experience. People often sent us pictures of their churches filled with his plants. It was such a gift to be able to grow them. That time was one of my favorite memories about the Christmas season. I hope you take the time to cherish your own memories during this time. Blessings to you all.