The Charlevoix Nativity Scene
It’s taken me 69 years to figure out that I need to decorate for the Christmas holidays in stages. While trimming the tree and finding spaces for Santa Clause figurines is fun, the process is very labor intensive and burns a lot of calories.
So, this year, in anticipation of the dawning of December, I took a first step and hauled all the storage bins from my garage into my house. And of course, that is not really the first step in the process. Prior to that one must identify the correct holiday labels (Christmas paraphernalia versus Halloween or Easter). Once the identification is complete, THEN comes the step I look forward to the least–wiping off the garage grime and dust from the bins and lugging them into the house. Once inside, I must find spaces to house the containers because stage one and stage two have consumed so much time and energy I’m no longer in the mood and often too tired to decorate.
Ok, so after 45 minutes, or even six or twenty-four hours, I’m ready to move on to stage three. Stage three is my favorite. It is the “lifting the lids and unwrapping the year-long buried treasures” phase. The lid lifting stage is usually accompanied by small, delight-filled gasps as sweet memories waft into the air almost like musical notes. Many of the treasures have been a part of our lives since we were children, or our children were children. “Oh my gosh, I forgot about the star tree topper Katie made! I exclaim to my very intrigued labradoodle. “Honey, here is your Georgia Bulldog we bought at the Maitland Art Festival” I shout handing the wreath-festooned clay ornament to my husband. Each ornament, Christmas tree sculpture, or nativity set is imbued with memories. I can remember where I was when I purchased each one. Stage four is all about the proper placement. “On which table does the Volkswagen bus music box go?”, I wonder each year. “No, no, that ornament can’t go there. It’s special and needs a prominent placement on the tree. Oh, and by the way, do we put the Christmas tree in the family room or living room?” It’s like we develop amnesia from year to year.
We decided on a placement in the living room this year.
I really enjoyed stage three this year. I had been eyeing the storage bin marked “nativity scene” for hours prior to decorating day, anticipating my delight at beholding the art inside.
I purchased this set for my husband to substitute for his dilapidated childhood nativity scene. I know, I know, it was sentimental and so sweet that he still had it after all these years. But the decay was real, and it had to go. Our newish ceramic set was purchased online from a pottery studio in Charlevoix, Michigan. The stoneware figures are adorable and a little hysterical. Mary has her hands over her mouth as if to say, “How in the hell did this happen to me?”
Mary looks a little shocked
The nails on Joseph’s clasped hands are painted white. The set contains, aside from the requisite trio, three wise men of different heights complete with gifts; three shepherds with white billowing robes and headpieces guarding their funky sheep; three camels, one horse, and one cow. I treasure these stoneware pieces in part because of the woman who led me to the art studio. Julie Caton, my dear pottery buddy, was a consummate connoisseur of cool art. Julie died a year ago and I continue to experience the loss of my mentor, mother figure, and friend. My husband and I traveled to Northern Michigan this summer and I was able to visit Mecca, in the form of the Bier Art Gallery and Pottery Studio, in Charlevoix, from whom we had purchased our nativity scene. I felt close to Julie on this pilgrimage. Opening the box containing the ceramic sculptures brought back so many memories of our friendship. I felt grateful.
The Bier Art Gallery and Pottery Studio in Charlevoix
Despite the hassle of wresting the Christmas tree into the stand and praying that the lights from last year still work, decorating for Christmas is worth the calorie burn. Those ornaments transport us back to another time in our lives that deserves to be remembered, if only for a month or so.
And then comes Step Five! Undecorating and dragging all that stuff back out to the garage. It is amazing, however, how much less time this step takes than the four before it.
Happy Holidays. I count you all as presents under my tree.