Christmas Treats

 

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. I admit it. I cried. I cried even though the story has been around forever and I cried every time I read it before. The beauty of a Christian community being reminded about what those comfortable, old rituals mean, and the joy of children being loved is enough to stir tears in any true believers and sympathetic co-religionists. I’ve already put in enough spoilers, so I’ll just say if you love Christmas and you love children this will open your heart wide.

Let It Glow. Charming is my favorite description for very fun things for children. This book oozes charm and even sparkles as it leads on a journey reuniting twins separated at birth who are adopted into a Christian family and a Jewish family, respectively. The twins switch homes for the holidays and they (and we) learn a lot about Christmas and Hanukah. There are also good lessons in courage and gentle reminders about the importance of observance. I’ve given two away already. 

Christmas Teatime. This book has me thinking I can write a Christmas of my own. It turns out you can make a tea with just scones, three sandwiches, and three cookies. That is totally doable if I pick my recipes strategically. Part inspiration, part how-to I’m letting this book be my guide.

For the Good of All

 One of my friends when I was young had severe disabilities. His family needed help carrying him up the flight of stairs that brought you to the sanctuary of our church. They requested that an elevator be put in. It started a whole battle of opinions and the final answer was a regrettable “no”. For the first time I saw a body of sincere believers make the wrong decision. It was my introduction to the fact that Christians can make selfish, wicked decisions en masse. 

Ever since then the push to accommodate disabled persons has interested me. I recently discovered a very accessible YouTube channel on the subject, Sarah Todd Hammer. Sarah became disabled at the age of eight. She is partially paralyzed in her arms and upper torso. She has still moved forward and achieved much. On her channel is a mix of advocacy pursuing greater understanding and show and tell videos about accommodations she currently employs. I find the person on the street perspective helps me understand disabled people better and it improves my efforts to be helpful whenever possible.

Sarah is fun to watch. Her bubbly personality lightens a weighty subject. You should give her a visit.

https://youtu.be/luoKLNtA3gA?si=tP5PX8uuqdZ095ho

Reunited

I’ve been handing on my useful tricks to interested parties. One of the first books to go was Fix Freeze Feast. It went first because it is one of the best. The dishes are easy to put together and easy to cook out of the freezer. There was no question about its usefulness. 

I recently discovered that I own 2,000 books. Logging them into Library Thing I also discovered that most of them are useful. Lending books has long been a habit of mine, but that is a small way to do good. BookTube might be calling. I rebought Fix Freeze Feast because it is so useful and therefore so recommendable. I’m considering doing BookTube shows drawing solely on my book collection. I am a person of many interests so it will be hit or miss with viewers much like this blog. I hope you’ll come and see it. If it becomes real I will invite you.