Colony Christmas Nativity display helps us celebrate the birth of Jesus

In the early morning hours of Black Friday, I pop out of bed—not to take advantage of the big box store sales, but to pull out my big boxes of Christmas decorations.

As my husband Chuck puts on my favorite Christmas music, I unpack the vast collection of Christmas decorations which we’ve acquired throughout our 42-year marriage and greet each as an old friend.

Decorating for Christmas transports me back to my childhood home, which every year my mother transformed into a Christmas wonderland. There were lights, garlands and Christmas balls. My five siblings and I would decorate delightful gingerbread houses my mother made from scratch and use them to adorn the fireplace mantle. Mom made wreaths of evergreen boughs, so the house even smelled festive. Every hall was decked, but the grandest and most special decoration of all was our nativity set.

It had a stable with real straw, a gold star lit up with a bluish tinted light and intricately painted figurines of shepherds and sheep, wise men and camels, Mary and Joseph and the blessed infant. It was the most enchanting display ever! I spent hours with my siblings arranging and re-arranging our manger scene. We would tell the story to each other over and over as we placed each little figure. It was the first decoration we put up and the last one to be taken down--as if we could not stand to go back to ordinary life after the holidays.

My parents still have that nativity scene. Now when I look at it with a critical eye, I see that the stable is made of cardboard, the sparse straw is glued on, and the star is glittered pasteboard with one blue Christmas bulb crudely attached. The tiny figures are plaster, rather poorly painted, chipped and worn bare in places. Mom told me she and Pop ordered it from the Sears and Roebuck catalog on one of their first Christmases. She doesn’t remember what she paid for it, but it was undoubtedly the least expensive, and in her words, “really not anything special at all.”

That humble Nativity of my youth taught the meaning of Christmas to my child heart, and perhaps because of it, I am now an avid collector of nativity sets. They are my favorite decorations to unpack each year. I have collected over 150 nativities throughout the years; seeking them out whenever we travel, finding treasures on eBay, scouting yard sales and thrift stores and even crafting a few myself. My children, friends and siblings know I love nativities and search for unusual sets for me. My collection includes a set in which Joseph holds the baby Jesus in his arms, and in another, a wise man carries the Christ child. One darling manger scene which I spent days sculpting from Fimo clay, seems to break in a new place every year, but super glue and patience still hold it together. There is a homemade Nativity Advent Calendar which my children anxiously opened each day and were disappointed if all they pulled out of the pocket was a star. The lovely set my sister made is a beautiful hand-painted and delicately shaded ceramic creche; it always takes the place of honor in our sun alcove. I treasure the sets from the different countries where my children and parents served church missions: like the one intricately carved from Taiwan and another roughly crafted from Nigeria. I place our Fisher Price and Snoopy nativity scenes on our coffee table; an open invitation to the grandchildren and little visitors to play. I have a few truly lovely and grand pieces which even my husband knows better than to disturb!

As I collected nativities I also collected some interesting facts: Saint Francis of Assisi is credited with creating the first manger scene in 1223 and the most well-known display in the United States is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There are literally tens of thousands of unique depictions— yet they tell the same story. It is a story of two refugees who found shelter in a stable and how God’s love was made manifest on that sacred night—witnessed by the humble and worshiped by the great.

Next weekend during Colony Christmas I will enjoy all the season has to offer--glitter, lights, Santa, reindeer, snowmen, and shopping. As I always do, I will make time to visit the Nativity Display at the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where over 1000 sets (including some of my own) will be gorgeously arranged. As I walk through the themed rooms enjoying the peace and calm, I will admire these many nativities, but my heart will be searching for a truly special one, the one Mom always brings, the one that says Christmas to me.

If you go

The Colony Christmas Nativity Display opens Saturday Dec. 9 between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. and Sunday Dec. 10 between 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Palmer, 560 West Bogard Rd (just down from Palmer High School).

Carol Kenley grew up in Palmer on a dairy farm. She owns and operates Kenley’s Alaskan Vegetables and Flowers, is president of the Palmer Lions Club, is on the Board of Directors of Alaska Farmland Trust, volunteers with Loaves of Love nonprofit charity, and until recently served on the board of directors for the Alaska State Fair. Carol is married, has children and grandchildren, and also volunteers for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.