Wisdom & Grace: My favorite Christmas activities

Dear friend,

It’s been quite a while since I’ve written. I thought I’d answer a question that folks ask me. The question I get asked the most often is, “How is retirement?”

Most often my response is, “Well, I’m pretty tired.” I miss the residents at the care center and I miss making a difference in their lives and in the lives of those that I would meet through my work as the chaplain for the hospital, care center and hospice. Many members of our community have told me how much they appreciated what I did for our community as I served as the pastoral care and activity director. I will forever be grateful for their kind words.

Since I have retired, I’ve been kept busy with some traveling, some speaking events, quite a number of officiating at funerals and lots of time with my eight (plus four foster) grandchildren. During the summer of 2019, Rod and I traveled to Alaska for five weeks. In late 2019, I made a trip of a lifetime to Myanmar (Burma) and taught for three weeks at Faith Theological Seminary in Myitkynia. The trip to Myanmar truly changed my life. Besides being glued to every word I spoke to them, they taught me a new appreciation for my husband and family, my church, my community and my country.

But December is here, and, of course, Christmas! While the care center activity director, I experienced two of my favorite activities through all the years.

The first was our annual Christmas Pageant where the residents “starred” as the shepherds, the wisemen and the angels. The idea for a Christmas Pageant actually came as a result of an ongoing activity called Armchair Traveler. In March we “traveled” to Ireland, in July we “traveled” to Washington, D.C., to celebrate our Independence, etc. So, in the fall I started thinking about where Armchair Traveler could go in December. I first thought of the North Pole. But then I thought, “We must go to where Christmas really began: Bethlehem!”

And with that realization, a floodgate of memories came to mind. I remembered when I was 10 years old and my Sunday School teacher at Havre Christian Church, Rusty Jones, informed our class, “Ila will memorize Luke 2:1-20 and we’ll use that as the narrative.” Thanks to Rusty’s faith in me and a whole lot of help from my mother, I did memorize Luke 2:1-20 and recited it for our Christmas program. Another year I was a shepherd and still another time I was an angel but, to my deepest disappointment, I was never cast as Mary.

For eight years I directed Bible Adventure Hour at Glenrock Christian Church in Wyoming. The first year I decided we needed to have a Christmas pageant. To preface the practice for the nearly 50 kids that would be participating, I shared the full Christmas story starting with the angel’s annunciation to Mary, followed by Joseph’s response and the trip to Bethlehem. I went on to tell them of shepherds and wise men.

To my amazement, the children were absolutely spellbound! Most of the kids were not regular church attenders. The only story they had ever heard was “Baby Jesus in a Manger.” They had never heard about the angel coming to Mary. They really weren’t sure how the shepherds and wise men fitted in. And for the next eight years we never missed sharing the Christmas pageant and the whole story.

Lori Henderson, the care center administrator, often starred as the angel Gabriel. Judy Solomon and the activity aides always helped out, but it was the residents who especially loved dressing up as angels, shepherds and wisemen. Helen Mueller was the narrator. Mary Stephens or Sharon Dolph accompanied us on the piano as we sang the beloved hymns of the most blessed event.

My other favorite memory was the Christmas Eve service. The first year I was there I tried to get one of the area ministers to come and do a service for us, but that did not work out as they were too busy at their own churches.

The next year I was determined to have a Christmas Eve service! The residents wanted it and they most certainly deserved it. A script directly from scripture with hymns to go along was developed. Many times, my husband and daughters did whatever was necessary.

With all this being said, I have come to some personal conclusions:

• With a degree in Christian education, my time spent as the Bible Adventure Hour director and as a chaplain and activity director, I am convicted of the essentiality of the Christmas pageant. It is necessary for teaching the true meaning of Christmas for children and yes, for residents in a care center also.

• For all their lives, most residents attended a Christmas Eve service. It was a very special time for them.

Thanks for the memories. I continue to be the most blessed woman who ever walked on the face of this Earth.

“Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests.’” Luke 2:13, 14

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Ila McClenahan lives in the Amos Trail area north of Havre. She is a retired chaplain and activity director.