CHRISTmas lights

All right-- back to CHRISTmas! Last night my family went to the Parents as Teacher's Christmas event. It was fun! Our little guy got to color a card, make hand prints on a paper plate, decorate (okay, eat) a cookie, and ride in a "sleigh" with horses! He had a blast, although I think he would have had just as much fun if there had been a few kids to play with in the big open cafeteria space and no activities at all. Oh well. What are toddlers for?

And while attending this event may, in fact, turn into a holiday tradition, the moment I'm going for here was looking at the local Christmas lights after it was over. Technically it is the first year my husband, son and I have driven aimlessly around a neighborhood for the sole purpose of seeing flashing candy canes and white deer, but my family did it every year growing up. In fact, it could almost be more like a competition than a tradition. Can we find more lights than last year?

And in our home town we knew all the places to go. The Wilson's regularly won the town prize with their elves' workshop and the Steigerwalt's were never far behind with a garden of lights and "running water" under a bridge in blue chasers. Some houses were beautiful with color-coordinating master plans and others were hideous in their attempt to place every decoration created by man on their front lawn.

Then there were the lights in the city. Each year after the Christmas party at my Gramma's we'd go to a neighborhood that worked together as a community to portray the life of Christ. The first houses had verses from the Old Testament prophesying the coming of a Messiah. And when I say verses I mean someone took a board and drilled holes spelling out each word and then took the time to place a light into each of those holes so you could read each verse in five inch tall twinkle lights. And the prophets? Well, you know those deer? That's kind of what the people looked like. Metal figures with lights close enough together that you can easily see the shape. So there is Isaiah, standing on someones lawn.

Then you get to the angel coming to Mary, riding on a donkey, stopping at an inn, Jesus in a manger, shepards in their fields, wisemen, the whole bit. Each in its own yard. With some squirrels and stuff in what must be the yards of non-believers. But the lights don't stop there. You see the ministry of the grown Savior, his death, and his resurrection. The tomb actually rolls away in blinking, timed lights. Its amazing.

Then you drive through the booth at the end, make a donation if you like, and get those little candy canes in a plastic package.

So like I said, this may be the first time for my own family. But it won't be the last.