Caesar and the Angel

This morning was our annual church Christmas program, including a re-enactment of the Nativity story. The buzz started in early November when the children requested their parts. Maria wanted to be an angel...perhaps a step up from last year's role as a sheep....at least a cooler costume to wear under the stage lights! Miles' main criteria was that he wanted a speaking part, which seemed to make the director happy since most of the boys DIDN'T want to speak. So, he was cast as a younger-than-usual Caesar Augustus.

Miles and Maria did their parts well and -- of course -- looked cute in the process. Miles used his best "official" voice to summon people to Jerusalem for the census. Maria hovered so close to baby Jesus that visitors probably thought it was her little brother! (She wasn't the only doting angel, though. Now that I think about it, what would you expect when there is a baby near a group of 3 to 7 year old girls who have been told to stay still and quiet?)

We had the most active "Jesus" we've had in quite a while, and poor 10-year-old "Mary" kept looking at the baby's dad in the front row, as if to ask, "Why don't you come up here and help me get this baby to stop crying!!??" Finally, she realized that he was giving her the green light to pick up the baby (earlier she'd been instructed to try and keep him in the manger), and all was at peace again.

On the drive home from church I asked the children what parts they aspired to for next year. Maria didn't know yet -- after all, it's a pretty big decision and she has 11 months to think about it! But Miles was quick to say that he wished Mary could be played by a boy. I was a bit concerned, but tried not to show it by asking that great parental cover-up question, "Why do you say that?" "Because Joseph doesn't have any lines," he immediately responded. Aah....a desire for more of the spotlight. I wonder how long it will be until he realizes that Mary always sings a solo?