And the Nativy Goes To....

Just a quick post tonight to share a wonderful experience (pictures coming later). We got to play a part tonight in the live Nativity at Tuachan ampitheater in St. George (Santa Clara). This was the third year that we were able to be a part of it and as always it was an amazing experience. Our good friends the Stuart family actually started the live Nativity and it grew to be so big that Tuachan invited them a few years back to use their stage. It has grown and changed over the years and many people in the area volunteer on different nights to be part of the cast. Families take part as either towns-people, shepherds, angels, wisemen, and of course Mary and Joseph. It is completed with recorded narration by Dick Norse, a wonderful soundtrack of moving music, and even live animals including a horse, a donkey, a camel, and a few goats and sheep. Three years ago we took part an I (Curtis) got to be the shepherd that carried the baby Jesus over to show the rest of the shepherds. Andi was there supervising some of her treatment center girls who were angels. Last year it was rained out so we actually had a little party at the Stuarts and watched one of the first years videos when their children were young and did it for their neighborhood. This year Andi and I were towns-people and I was the third innkeeper that turns Joseph away, but then feels bad and shows them to the manger where they can sleep. Because it is a volunteer cast we show up early to get our costumes, run through our part, do a practice run thru, and then do two performances back to back (it's about 20 minutes long). My friend Adam kept joking about getting a "Nativy" award for Best Performance (hence the title of this post--no such awards exist however.)

It really is an interesting feeling to play part in the story. I think no matter what part you get you begin to see the story unfold from a different perspective than just an onlooker. It makes you wonder how the people in the story really felt and what they really experienced. It has become a favorite new tradition of mine and we hope we can keep participating each year. We are grateful to the Stuart's and the Endsley's for inviting us to be a part of it.

On the way home we were listening to the radio and I heard an AMAZING new Christmas song. It is probably one of the best original pieces I have heard in a long time. I am always looking for good new music and this fits the bill. Here is the song on YouTube. The artist is Brandon Heath, a christian artist. If you like the song it is available until Friday on Amazon for free! (part of a 25 days of free Christmas songs) Or it is $.99 at iTunes. http://www.amazon.com/The-Night-Before-Christmas/dp/B002X33IRO/

Enjoy! I think that this song summed up some of my feelings about our experience tonight. Very well written and performed: