Almost Christmas

Last week we told about our Nativity. This week Mike built a little manger for Baby Jesus and we added real grass hay from the church property. A member family cuts and bales the hay and they get to keep it. It is good for us to have the field mowed and good for them to be able to have the hay for their animals.

Last Sunday I didn't finish our blog until after midnight. (It was a busy day.) I led the choir for choir practice (the choir director was sick) and then played the piano for Relief Society. That evening I accompanied our neighbor John Marshall when he sang Christmas numbers at the Residence, and then I played for group singing after that. Monday night Mike and I gave the home evening lesson at the residence and I played the opening song.

The Marshal family, Jeff and Sharon and their two sons, John and Nathan live next door to us. They are a very nice family. John has a wonderful voice and he had a lead part in their school play which we attended last month. It was GREAT! I asked him if he would sing for us at the Memorial and he agreed. He did a wonderful job.

On the other side of us is Dave. He is divorced and has a son who just got married recently. We had a birthday party for him in October, then we invited him to come to the visitor's center. He did and he loved it, and told his mom all about it. He went back later on his own and saw the Joseph Smith movie. (I told him that I had a son, a daughter-in-law, and a grandson who were in it.) He really enjoyed it. He had a hip replacement a month ago and was sick to his stomach from the pain medications. I asked if he would like the missionaries to give him a blessing and he said he would. The two things he told us about from the blessing were that God loves him, and "he is a good man." He is reading the Book of Mormon and the missionaries (young elders who live upstairs) are teaching him. Every time we feed the young missionaries we invite him over for dinner too.

Rich is one of our neighbors upstairs. His mobile home got washed away in the flood after Hurricane Irene. He lives with a beautiful black cat named Ichabod. He talks to it just as if it were one of his children. We all love it. He explained to me one day that he was able to give up alcohol on his own, but no matter what he did, he was not able to give up drugs. He prayed and prayed and prayed for help and one day his prayers were answered. "God just took it away from me," he said. He is very grateful and thanks God every day for that blessing. He told us that the cat (he found wandering around) was a gift from God too. Rich loves to read. The first time the Elders talked to him he told them he wasn't interested, but as time went on he told them he might consider reading the Book of Mormon. One afternoon I had the opportunity to talk to him out in front of our apartment. I explained that the Book of Mormon was the story of people who were descendants of Joseph in Egypt. I told briefly how they got here and that they brought the writings of the Old Testament prophets with them. He said, "You mean the Book of Mormon doesn't go against the Bible?" "Oh no, It doesn't." I told him. "It is another testament of the Bible, and of Jesus Christ." I explained how the books are cross referenced, and how the Book of Mormon goes along hand in hand with the bible. I told him how the prophet Nephi love to quote Isaiah. He said that he would read it. I texted the Elders and they took one over. We haven't heard how it is going.

Over 300 people visited the Memorial last night (Saturday). Most of those people have not been there before. Friday evening a group came from a neighboring ward. One of the men came up to Sister Johnston (Senior Missionary) and asked if she remembered him. She looked at him and said, "You do look familiar." He then told her that she was the one who gave him a Book of Mormon one year ago at Christmas. He went home read it and was baptized shortly thereafter. She was thrilled to know that.

Mike had an interesting miracle this past week. Last Sunday he looked at the ward bulletin and saw Brother Caswell's birthday on it. On Monday night he wished Brother Caswell Happy Birthday. Let me back up and explain that when we first began going to home evening, Brother Caswell sat alone. Mike started sitting by him every week and visiting with him and they have become very good friends. Brother Caswell has one daughter who had a brain tumor when she was young, which caused her to have some disabilities. His wife left them, and he has raised their daughter by himself. It meant a lot to him that Mike wished him Happy Birthday. (Here is the miracle part) Brother Caswell asked, "How did you know it was my birthday?" Mike said, "It was in the bulletin." Brother Caswell said that it was not in the bulletin. They forgot to put it in, and he pulled out a bulletin and sure enough it was NOT there. They put it in this week with a little note that said (late). Well Brother Charchenko saw it in the bulletin, even though it wasn't there.

We SEND OUR LOVE and wish you all a WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!

Our Nativity

We didn't bring a creche or nativity with us, but it just didn't seem right to have Christmas without one, so we decided to make one. We began looking around for things we could use. We wanted small rocks to build walls with, but it was difficult to find ones of a uniform size. One day, when lookind around behind our apartment for rocks, I found some weathered pieces of sheet rock and some pieces of plywood that were so old that they had come apart in thin layers. We also gathered lots of sticks from the woods by our shop (at the memorial) and brought home a few pieces of slate left over from the roof of the visitor's center. We also found some pieces of birchbark. Mike calls it dumpster diving, but I started looking for everything that had been thrown away (wood scraps etc) that might be able to be used.
We had a great time. Mike built a little corral
(on the right) and some places for hay (on the left). The back wall is made from the weathered sheet rock, and the floor is slate. The boards are made from birch bark cut in strips to look like boards, with some lines and knot-holes painted in with oil paints. We had to soak the birch bark and then it would peel apart in layers, almost as thin as paper. The cross boards are from the weathered wood behind the house and the roof is made of pine needles. The wind blew down a huge limb and it was salvaged for the roof.

It took a few weeks, (some bandaids for Elder Charchenko when his carving knife slipped) and lots of patience, but we were able to make a nativity for our apartment.

The characters (Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus) came from the dollar store. (We have learned well from mom). We had to scrape off the bright colored orange eye shadow, and extra eye-lashes, to transform some unusual looking faces into ones that looked more appropriate. The beard and hair of Joseph came from black pom-poms. We thought you might enjoy seeing the almost finished product. Elder Charchenko is going to make a manger for baby Jesus. It really needs some animals, but we have looked everywhere with no success. It's OK. Mom started out with just a Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus.

We hope that everyone reading this letter is having a great Christmas, and we pray that you will remember the REAL REASON WE CELEBRATE. Let's keep Christ in Christmas by reaching out in love to those around us. Smile and be happy

Love and Hugs to everyone!

Making Christmas Come Alive

The little donkey on the left (a neighbor's pet) was donated for the month of December to be part of our Nativity pageant and now he is housed by the visitor's center for children to visit, and pet when they come to see the lights. There are also two sheep. All are very friendly. People used to just drive around to see the lights, but now that the sheep and donkeys are here (and cookies and apple cider in the residence) they come and visit and stay a while. Christmas is a busy time here and everyone has worked very hard to make it beautiful and special for visitors.
Elder Charchenko helped to build the stable and corrals that you see in the next picture.
The live Nativity program took place in this stable.

As many of you know our family (especially mother) has spent many hours building and improving the life-size nativity they put up every year to share with everyone. It was always a dream of mother's to have a nativity. Fourteen years ago they began with Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus. They used plastic pipe and chicken wire and donated heads that were no longer used at the beauty school. Mom added beards and mustaches to make the ladies look like shepherds and Wise-men. She also used rubber Halloween masks and painted them. Each year as improvements and additions were made it has become more and more beautiful. All the children and their spouses have helped in some way or another. As many as can make it come to Pomerene the Saturday after Thanksgiving to help put up the Nativity. Each year something new was added. Then one year Mom found a beautiful Baby Jesus online and ordered it. It was FANTASTIC! I will never forget how excited she was when it came. Baby Jesus no longer looked like a doll. He looks like a real baby (as you can see by this picture).


As you gather together this Christmas season with your loved ones, we encourage you to remember the real reason we celebrate.

There is a saying that we have been hearing lately and it is very true...

"Jesus is the reason for the season."
We hope you are finding joy and remembering what is truly important! We send love and greetings. Make it the best Christmas ever!