Silent Night, Holy Night

Littered across my desk, planner, and refrigerator are no less than a dozen notes that have come home in recent weeks with regard to the Christmas Pageant at the kindergarten. The teachers and mothers, embracing me under their collective wing, saw to it that for every communication that came from school, another found its way into my hands...a hand-written or typed explanation for my benefit.  The culmination of those letters, sticky notes, and translations came in the form of a Christmas performance I am unlikely to forget.

For the best several weeks, there were merely glimpses of what was to come at Wednesday's pageant.  Humming, singing, more humming, more singing, and an occasional proclamation of some kind, spoken in clear and confident Japanese. Pressed further, Patrick shared that he was an angel in the Christmas play and that his line meant "Name the baby 'Jesus'". Name the baby 'Jesus'?! A true Christmas play! I couldn't get enough of his one line, and he was quite proud to practice it for us.  Patrick was concerned that I wouldn't be able to understand what was going on.  Luckily,  it's a story quite familiar to me.

As familiar as the story may be, I have never seen the Nativity shared in this way.  It wasn't showy - the costumes were quite simple, more of a suggestion than a transformation.  It wasn't complicated - the children performed in small groups of angels, innkeepers, and shepherds in turn, and calmly took their seats when finished.  But the beauty of the pageant was found in its simple layers...it was all about those perfect little layers!  While the children changed into their costumes, the room of waiting mothers was taught a simple canon that we sang as the children transitioned from one scene to another later in the play.  Clever.  While one teacher lent background music and accompaniment on piano, the other, elegantly dressed and seated in a child-sized chair, narrated the story providing cues for the children. Simple.  And in a miracle of theatrical blocking, those six year olds moved easily about the stage, seamlessly and gracefully.  If you've ever tried to arrange even a small group of children for any purpose, you know how difficult this can be!

We were told after the performance that this was the first time all the children were present since the start of rehearsals, and that some of the children didn't know what part they would be playing until their arrival that morning. You wouldn't have known it.  They did beautifully.  And surely it was not my imagination the flutter of shared pride among the mothers for the new boy at school who spoke his line so well!

As if my heart weren't full enough!  The play was followed by a Christmas party in the school, heavy on holiday spirit and light on chaos.  I know my teacher friends can appreciate this masterful accomplishment! There was Santa, there was singing.  Silent Night (in Japanese) was beautifully illuminated in the darkened hall by the sharing of a flame from kindergartner to kindergartner, mother to mother. There were gifts and gift exchanges. And somewhere amidst this glorious gathering was another presentation by the children: Christmas carols played on hand chimes. Working and playing together is a big part of Japanese kindergarten!

The pageant and party marked the beginning of the Winter Holidays, and Patrick is thrilled with his three-week respite from the rigors of school.  After all...all that working and playing together can be quite taxing!  

I am thrilled for Patrick, but my joy will be complete when dear Evelyn fully recovers from her cold, stomach flu, and pink eye - a pesky and unhappy brew of malaise hovering over her for the past week or so.  I hope it's not asking too much of Santa to bring an extra wish for this little girl's stocking...