 Wednesday December 10th, 2003 |
Wednesday December 10th, 2003 |
A 30 minute pre-show warmup of individual singers, duets, cello and
keyboard pieces performed started the evening. Each one was in the
holiday spirit with typical Christmas renditions the likes of Silent
Night and Jingle Bell Rock. A couple of these acts were in true 'diva
form' including glitter and flash! The audience cheered, hooted, and
flashed off digital shots to save for their archives.
The children then offered suggestions of common yet meaningful ways to share our light; spend time
helping people, being kinder to family and friends, and a 3rd grader who took a 1st grader under his wing and showed her how to use the computer. Rachel Kroog completed the evening by inviting the audience to join
the kids in finding ways they can spread their light in their lives.
The evening ended with our tradition of singing Silent Night and We
Wish You a Merry Christmas. Of course the night wasn't complete without
a treat for all of cookies and cider. What a
great celebration to open our ears and listen to our children for that
true meaning of Christmas.....and never losing hope. Their voices told
the story and each little voice harkened one and all to "CELEBRATE THE
LIGHT". Listen!
Christmas calls for taking time to pause and ponder what truly is the
"meaning of Christmas". How better to do that than with children!!!
Last Wednesday night, the children of SJA, gathered for the Children's
Christmas Program under the guidance of Rachel Kroog.
The theme this year "Let's Celebrate the Light" presented a variety
of customs and traditions the world over. This was an opportunity, for
once, for the older generation to stand back and LISTEN. Open your
ears and listen to the voices of children and what they had to say,
their story and message of how we can all see the LIGHT in the world. A
world of hope.
The ‘official’ program began with the parade of children dressed in colorful
costumes from cultures around the world. They entered singing the
key signature song, Time for Acceptance and Love:
With that, the children all screamed, "Let's Celebrate the Light"!
followed with the statement that on this journey they would take us
around the world to see the different ways cultures celebrate the
holidays and how similarly they honor the Creator. Their eyes were
dancing with excitement only found in novice little performers. A
few selected kids were dressed in traditional cultural attire such as an
African wildlife headdress, a glittering blue chinese silk kimono and
a top heavy sombrero.
The four holiday cultures touched on were Nigerian, Hanukkah, Chinese,
and Mexican. The children sang songs from the countries that shared
symbols that were surprisingly similar. Some of these were the use of
candles standing for principles such as unity, responsibility,
creativity and faith. The Nigerian's candleholder, the Kinara, held 7
candles along with an ear of corn representing the children. Hanukkah
celebrates with the Menorah candleholder with 8 candles. The Chinese
use lanterns as a guiding light and fireworks to ward off evil spirits.
Introducing each of the four customs the children read about the
traditions. The message heard throughout the stories were that the
gifts to children were rewarded to them for good behavior, acts of
kindness, good thoughts or for studying hard. These festivals of
lights touched on the renewal of hope, faith and spiritual growth.
The program included scenes with children parading in disguise as the
Chinese dragon and sun and Mexican dancers
complete with pinatas. The kids were thrilled to dance and sway candle
flashlights across the crowd. The floor was also filled with future program
performers crawling aimlessly towards their older sisters and brothers.
and
