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When Anita and I were first married, we were just buying the farm and the engineering business was a "one man
show", so we had little money to spare to buy things.
Yet that never stopped us from using our imagination and making stories and dreams come true.
When Christmas came, Anita wanted to set up a Nativity Scene.
As I was busy trying to establish our farm and business I did not have the time to work with her and she did a
wonderful job of it. She showed her talents even then, making much with little.
Anita made the first one and also entered it into a Christmas competition run by either the Country Women's Association
or the Red Cross. I can't recall which organization exactly. She won first prize for its simplicity that is the main theme
of the story.
I made the next stable of wood, using tree twigs and sticks appear to be logs for the framework. The roof was made from
dry grass glued to a three-ply roof.
In our mind it was important to show the simplicity of where the baby was to be born, i.e. a simple log stable with an
earth and thatched roof.
I made subsequent ones as the other stables became too old and needed replacing. We later added yards to hold the stock
and trees while at the same time sticking with the original concept of simplicity.
The people and animals for the first one were made from paper cut-outs of the Nativity scene, often taken from wrapping
papers images. These were all we had for the first two or three years.
As we became more established we started to add models of animals and people, but decided the stable should continue to
have an Australian effect, hence it was built in an open way as you can see from the pic.
Christmas in Australia is hot and dry and we felt the children would not understand any idea of snow or ice. Why should
they? They had never seen snow until they grew up.
More was added to it and the story as the years went by and the children grew up and asked more questions:)
While the children were growing up we had the Wise Men travel around the room to simulate they were travelling a long
way to arrive in time to see the Christ Child when it was born.
That is now the family tradition that is also being passed down to the grandchildren and the great grandchildren.
The stable is put up approximately three weeks before Christmas and the three Wise Men start out on their journey.
Every few days they suddenly appear on the top of another cabinet and the children asked how did they do this?
Anita told them that they had to close their eyes and imagine the Wise men were getting closer and closer Bethlehem and that is why the models moved around the rooms.
After all if the models didn't move, perhaps that might mean the Wise men might be unable to continue with their journey.
That would be terrible!!!.
The children were told they had to wish with all of their heart and might the Wise men were not get delayed. Whenever they came to see us, they had better check whether the Wise men were still coming:)
This is the "magic" of Xmas.
It is a beautiful story about the birth of the Christ Child, but it is also a time when dreams are wished upon and some will come true.
As our children were growing up, Anita would add bits and pieces about the journey to keep them interested and this story continued as they too, married and had children of their own.
It was always emphasized that the Evening Star guided them to where they had to go.
Meanwhile the Shepherds heard the sound of trumpets and saw an angel who told them of the great coming event and where to find the baby Jesus.
They also saw a host of angels singing and praising the coming event.
The sounds were so joyous that they knelt in prayer and praised the Lord.
Then they too travelled to see the child born.
As they did not have so far to come as the Wise men, they set up camp around the stable while they waited patiently for the birth of the child.
Our children and the grandchildren and now the great grand children each year will hear the story and woe betide us if there is any part of the story left out:)
They never seem to tire of hearing the story and whenever they come to visit they run to the lounge room to see whether the Wise men are making good progress and will arrive in time.
That includes adults as well:)
They were told of the gifts the Wise men brought, the greatest gifts the Wise men could find for a child who was to be born the "King" and Saviour of the world.
On Christmas day when they visited Oma and Opa they would go to the stable and look to see if baby Jesus was born.
They would see the baby in the cradle and also see the Wise Men had arrived in time.
As the years went by our children and later their children and grandchildren never seem to loose the sense of wonderment of the story of the birth of Jesus. The events leading up to it, e.g. the journey of the Wise men; the story of the shepherds and the host of Angels and also the fact that he was born in a lowly stable and not to riches.
The sense of wonderment has increased for all adults and children alike. With the passing of Anita (Oma), the children asked Opa if he would continue the story.
Opa said of course he would be pleased to do so and thought it would also be fitting that it should be shown in his Web page in a part called Memories of Anita.
The story has also influenced many of our "Sons and Daughters of the Heart": young people who have come within our home and heart over the years.
It also shows how a little imagination about the countries and lands the Wise-men travelled through, can add to the influence and assure that the story of the birth of Jesus does not become a dull uninteresting story. At the same time it instils all of the reasons for his Birth for the present and future generations.
NOTE: I would like to express my appreciation for advice and assistance provided by a good friend of Anita's and I would hope now mine.
She is known as Ariel, the nickname she uses on the Internet. Her advice and assistance is greatly appreciated in respect to presentation and graphics.
In Memory of my beloved wife Joan Anita Wilson
Worldwide Copyright John W. 1998,2005
