Come Unto Christ, Video

https://www.comeuntochrist.org/light-the-world/the-christ-child

Christmas and Music

What would Christmas be without music?  Here are some of the wonderful moments we enjoyed this holiday season:

As we decorated our Christmas tree, we listened to Kurt Bestor's arrangements of Angels We Have Heard on High, and Prayer of the Children, among others.  His music is some of our favorite.

Another day we invited the family over for dinner.  Afterward, we bundled up and walked to some of our neighbor's homes to sing Christmas carols and leave a box of cookies.  It was touching to see the expression of appreciation in the faces of friends I have grown to love over the years.

Then, two days before Christmas, we sang with the ward choir.  I like to think we might have been part of the heavenly choir that sang to the Shepherds on the night of the Savior's birth.  And like the Shepherd's humble gift, we gave from our hearts.

Christmas Eve, I requested that Bill and our youngest son play the marimba Bill's mother gave him.  The marimba is a beautiful instrument that produces mellow sounds like a harp.  Afterward we continued singing Christmas carols and hymns around the piano.

Christmas morning has traditionally been a time when our children find clever ways of waking Bill and I up before opening presents.   For instance, one year Bill and I spotted the blinds on our window suddenly begin to wave.  Then our TV turned on unexpectedly, with no one else in the room.  Finally our adult children burst into the room to pounce on us and get us up.  We found out, the night before, they had meticulously hidden a string in the carpet that connected the window blinds to the hallway outside our door, and they confiscated our TV control so they could operate it through the window, ... such an elaborate prank and one we remember every year.  Other years they succeeded to get me bolting from the bed to the sound of wrapping paper being torn.  Preset cell phone alarms, trumpet trios, singing off key or other presentations have been equally memorable.  This year, with most of the children celebrating Christmas morning in their own homes, and with guests in our home, it was our turn to wake everyone in the house.  Bill and our son chose to play a trumpet duet for the missionaries and my father, intentionally off key.  It's guaranteed to wake every mouse in the house!

A few days before Christmas, I overheard the missionaries (from Vermont and Georgia) practicing a song for a missionary devotional.  So, after opening our presents Christmas morning, I requested they sing "Oh Come Emanuel" as a gift to us.

Then, we enjoyed a brunch at our oldest son's home.  This was followed by listening to him play the guitar while we sang Silent Night, Old King Wenceslas and other favorites.    It's a treat to blend our voices and be touched by words that keep our thoughts alive with hope and joy.  We have always loved music and the power of it's message.  I appreciate these Christmas gifts which continue to bind us together, and allow me to experience feelings of love while worshiping the Lord Jesus Christ.

Christmas Gift Giving - Experiences

For Christmas this year, our oldest daughter asked us not to send toys to their children as presents.  Instead, she asked for "experiences" that would create memories all year.  So, we bought them a family-season-pass to the Zoo.  Her mother-in-law purchased them a family-season-pass to the Science and History Museum.  

This same daughter was in charge of getting Bill and I a Christmas gift from all our children.  They pool their money together, and one of them selects the gift.  It was the perfect year to request a contribution toward season tickets to a small playhouse nearby.  Then Bill and I bought two extra season tickets, so we can invite family or friends to go with us.  Our daughter was excited to create a Christmas experience package for us.

I am in charge of giving a gift this year to my father, from all my siblings.  So, following the theme of an "experience", Bill offered to take Dad on an airplane ride.  My father was a pilot during WWII, and I recently found out he once had a comercial pilot license (but chose a different occupation), so he was excited to fly again.  And, this experience was as much a present for Bill as for Dad, because he is always looking for a reason to go flying and take someone with him.  The three of us flew from Logan over the Wasatch Mountain Range to Bear Lake.  The crisp wintry air gave a clear outline to the peaks below, and the sun cast shadows among the trees, mountain slopes, and from the clouds onto the water below.  My father enjoyed putting his hands and feet on the controls for a while.  Now, all three of us retain the gift of a treasured memory.

Christmas at Temple Square

Our daughter invited us to join them at the Joseph Smith Memorial Bldg to attend an art show by some of the local artists, and see the Christmas lights on Temple Square.  Millions of people come from all over the world to walk around the temple and into the visitor centers.  The Tabernacle Choir practices and performs here.  I have many memories of bringing our family to this place, sometimes listening to our children sing with their high school choirs around the beautiful JSMB balcony.

Christmas in Denver

We had only one hitch in our visit to Denver for Christmas, and that was, we took an additional gift of the flu.  So, the first two days we slept, visited and mopped up after one another.  Actually, I was one of few who didn't get sick, and I dodged some of the most unpleasant jobs in an effort to minimize my exposure.


By Christmas Eve, most were feeling well enough to enjoy a reenactment of the Christmas story, using darling hand puppets.  Our daughter read from the scriptures, while her husband and the three children crouched behind a blanket covered board, and held up Mary, Joseph, Shepherds and Angels, to the smiles of us all.   When they ran short on hands, our son-in-law's quick thinking saved the day, and his foot appeared holding the donkey.

Traditionally, my daughter sings a song to the children when she tucks them in bed.  This night, she asked us to join her in a tender rendition of Silent Night.

Guard Him, Joseph

Still lingering around my piano, is the vision and echo of family members quietly singing, "Guard Him, Joseph", a beautiful Christmas duet written by Sally DeFord.  I hear soft guitar and the words of "Away in a Manger", while the young twirl and play; and on the kitchen table rest homemade snow globes, a pot of chicken soup and family Christmas memories.

http://www.defordmusic.com/

Anonymous Service

Last Sunday, our Bishop encouraged each member of the ward, to offer anonymous service to at least one other person.  A couple of years ago he suggested we serve someone who lives within five houses of our own homes.  I have been thinking a lot about this.  Although I try to serve, rarely is it done completely anonymously.  But, what could be better than this, in keeping with the Christmas spirit?  Even writing this, has perhaps compromised and diluted the gift I might have otherwise given and received.