Getting Out Christmas

Wasn't going to decorate this year...wasn't sure I could handle the pain of taking it all down after New Year's. But this may be my daughter's last Christmas at home (she hopes) and I asked her. YES was the reply.

December 20th. Raining. Dishwasher going. Listening to KING FM 98.1 online Christmas channel. My favorites are carols from around the world...Huron Carol, Still, Still, Still, A La Nanita Nana and others.

I set up my Nativity first...solemnly contemplating that still night when Jesus Christ was born. I have pictured this night since childhood as mild with a small, fresh breeze. I can now feel the sweaty hair rise slightly from Mary's brow as the wind washes over her after her travail. I can hear the steady breaths of her sleep as she rests from her labor. I can smell the straw of the stable, the earth so near and the warmth of the nearby animals.  I can see Joseph, awake, watchful of his wife and the Child -The Child, who would change the way humans regard God, sin and forgiveness. I touch the babe, Jesus, as he squirms free from his swaddle. He grips my finger. I smile.

And now I continue through my mess, determined to make Christmas happen for my family, when really now, I have all I will ever need to have of the season - A testimony that Jesus Christ is my Savior. Every thing else is fluff.