The "W" in Christmas

[Kirk]

I got this in an email tonight...

The "W" in Christmas

Each December, I vowed to make Christmas a calm and peaceful

experience.

I had cut back on nonessential obligations - extensive card writing,

endless baking, decorating, and even overspending.

Yet still, I found myself exhausted, unable to appreciate the

precious family moments, and of course, the true meaning of

Christmas.

My son, Nicholas, was in kindergarten that year. It was an exciting

season for a six year old.

For weeks, he'd been memorizing songs for his school's "Winter

Pageant."

I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd be working the night of the

production. Unwilling to miss his shining moment, I spoke with his

teacher. She assured me there'd be a dress rehearsal the morning of the

presentation.

All parents unable to attend that evening were welcome to come then.

Fortunately, Nicholas seemed happy with the compromise.

So, the morning of the dress rehearsal, I filed in ten minutes

early, found a spot on the cafeteria floor and sat down. Around the

room, I saw several other parents quietly scampering to their seats.

As I waited, the students were led into the room. Each class,

accompanied by their teacher, sat cross-legged on the floor. Then,

each group, one by one, rose to perform their song.

Because the public school system had long stopped referring to the

holiday as "Christmas," I didn't expect anything other than fun,

commercial entertainment songs of reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes

and good cheer.

So, when my son's class rose to sing, "Christmas Love," I was

slightly taken aback by its bold title.

Nicholas was aglow, as were all of his classmates, adorned in fuzzy

mittens, red sweaters, and bright snowcaps upon their heads.

Those in the front row- center stage - held up large letters, one by

one, to spell out the title of the song.

As the class would sing "C is for Christmas," a child would hold up

the letter C. Then, "H is for Happy," and on and on, until each

child holding up his portion had presented the complete message,

"Christmas Love."

The performance was going smoothly, until suddenly, we noticed her;

a small, quiet, girl in the front row holding the letter "M" upside

down - totally unaware her letter "M" appeared as a "W".

The audience of 1st through 6th graders snickered at this little

one's mistake. But she had no idea they were laughing at her, so she

stood tall, proudly holding her "W".

Although many teachers tried to shush the children, the laughter

continued until the last letter was raised, and we all saw it

together.

A hush came over the audience and eyes began to widen.

In that instant, we understood the reason we were there, why we

celebrated the holiday in the first place, why even in the chaos,

there was a purpose for our festivities.

For when the last letter was held high, the message read loud and

clear:

"C H R I S T W A S L O V E"

And, I believe, He still is.

Amazed in His presence... .humbled by His love.

[missm]

Kirk, that was absolutely beautiful!! It made me think of the Winter programs Tommie and I went to see Chris perform in and now we look forward to doing the same with TJ!!!

Thank you so much for sharing that beautiful story!!! It is so easy to get caught up in the commercialism of the season and to forget the real reason for this season!!

[The Kiwi Connection]

What an AWESOME story Kirk, thanks for sharing it.

[darlene]

WOW! He sure was and continues to be. Thanks SO much for sharing this!

--Love, Dar

[Kirk]

Missm, love your current avatar

[BlondeVelvet]

Missm, love your current avatar

I love it too!

[missm]

Thank you, Kirk & Kim!!! When I first saw it...it just screamed my name!!