Monday, December 19, 2011

Christmas pageant

Yesterday was a busy Sunday; church and then the kindergarten Christmas program that lasted until evening.

The children's program was a success. Well, with more than a hundred cute children, no matter what they do the parents' eyes will be sparkling!

There were a few extra special moments. A few weeks ago when choosing parts for the Christmas pageant (a musical), one slightly autistic girl, M-chan, volunteered to be the innkeeper's wife. She was enthralled with the innkeeper's wife's costume of an apron and kerchief. And when deciding who would be the innkeeper, M-chan turned to another handicapped boy and said,

"You should be the innkeeper!"

K-chan cannot stand on his own nor does he understand much of what is going on around him but he does have a vocabulary consisting of a few words. "Bye-bye", "Ii yo (okay)". The teachers wondered how this pageant was going to go with two main characters who don't do much talking on their own.

Yesterday, when Joseph and Mary were traveling to Bethlehem, they visited the inn and the innkeeper's wife was prompted to say:

"There is no room in the inn."

Joseph: "Hmm. That is a problem. Is there anywhere else we can stay?"

Innkeeper's wife: "There is a stable."

Joseph: "Oh that would be great. May we stay there tonight?"

And the innkeeper, K-chan said:

"Ii yo." (Okay)

Oh, the exchanges of smiles amongst the teachers! The pulling out of tissues and handkerchiefs amongst the parents!

And the teacher who played the piano for the musical this year has had some health problems and wasn't able to practice as much as she'd liked to have. It was touch and go as to whether she was even going to be able to attend the program but she did a fantastic job and I noticed throughout her music score were little pictures that the children had drawn for her to give her extra support. When it was all over, at the curtain call, the teacher was sobbing and laughing at the same time and her tears drew more from the rest of us.

The children and the teacher should be proud of themselves!

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