MY FIRST GIG AS A CHRISTMAS SUPERSTAR

The scraggly line inched slowly forward as the first grade girls scuffled and stretched on their toes to be the tallest in our class, but I won hand’s down. That time was my one and only life time compensation for being the biggest girl in every class I was in throughout school.

As I bent over the baby (really my Dionne Quintuplet doll named Annette) my long brown hair hung down around my shoulders. At the request of my teacher, I was allowed to take my tight braids out and brush out my long hair, something I was never allowed to do at home. She obviously didn’t think that Mary would have had long braids. Thank you, Mary Jane Crowe!

Joseph was there too, I’m sorry to report. If wouldn’t have minded sharing the spotlight with the baby’s father, but not red haired Dickie Henderson, of all people! He was the “bad” boy of the class. How humiliating! I kept asking myself, ‘Why did teacher choose him?’

Looking back, years later, I realized she chose him because he would be a mischief maker among the shepherds, but as Joseph, he was right up there in front and had to behave himself. I would have enjoyed my starring role as the mother Mary, if he hadn’t kept winking at me.

There was a great light glowing from the manger (courtesy of the large spot light that my first grade teacher had placed underneath). I did my best to ignore Joseph as I knelt on the rough stage in prayer by the baby lying on the sweet smelling straw, with my glorious long hair.