Concert of Carols

We were treated to little ballerinas during the Christmas concert of

White Mountain Symphony Orchestra today.

December 3, 2016

This afternoon Mark and I attended Sarah's annual Christmas concert with White Mountain Symphony Orchestra. It's always fun to enjoy holiday music this time of year, especially when my daughter is one of those making the music.

As usual, we couldn't see Sarah from where we were seated.

She and her violin were somewhere in back on the left.

This year has been a little off-kilter for me. Usually by Thanksgiving, I can't wait to put on Christmas music and start decorating the house and doing my Christmas shopping. Now, here it is a full week after Thanksgiving, and for some reason it just hasn't hit me yet. I don't even have a Christmas tree. No, I'm not feeling Scrooge-ish. I think it's simply due to the fact that this is the first Christmas in which I no longer have any of my children living under my roof.

All the tiny ballerinas come out to dance during the Nutcracker Suite.

My kids, on the other hand, are certainly enjoying the Christmas spirit. Sarah and Chris already have their tree up and finished their Christmas shopping yesterday. Dylan and Jake have decorated their apartment, and they did all their Christmas shopping two days ago. Even Jacob has already called me from Utah to ask for gift ideas for the family. (Not that I was any help to him...)

 Here's two minutes' worth of little ballerinas making their Christmas debut. Adorable!

I guess it's time to get my head in the game! I really enjoyed the Christmas concert by Nashville Tribute Band two weeks ago, and I have been listening to their album, Merry. Today's concert touched me a little more, to the point of even bringing tears to my eyes. And then, after the concert, we went to a beautiful display of literally hundreds of Nativity Scenes just a few blocks from the concert, which was held at Snowflake High School, about thirty minutes north of our town.

A few blocks from Snowflake High School is the historic Main Street Chapel,

where Jacob and Danielle held their wedding reception more than two years ago.

It's one of the oldest LDS chapels still in use.

Tucked behind the Main Street Chapel is the LDS Social Hall

A sign for the Nativity display outside the Social Hall's doors.

The first Nativity we saw was outside the Social Hall doors.

Naturally, I used up my camera battery during the concert, so I turned instead to my trusty cell phone camera to capture the Nativity collection. I apologize in advance for the quality of these pictures. I only hope they convey somehow the complete awesomeness of this huge display.

I've only been inside the Social Hall a couple of times, to attend wedding receptions,

since I don't spend much time in Snowflake. I didn't even know it had a theater inside.

They had a short Christmas video playing here.

I'm not exaggerating when I say there were hundreds of Nativities on display in the Social Hall. I estimate that there were about 400 Nativity Scenes of various types. And that's a conservative guess. I took about sixty pictures in all. Most of those shots show multiple scenes, and I didn't even capture every Nativity on film.

This is how I imagine Mary and her Firstborn.

I'm not going to share all those pictures in this post. There are simply too many, so I'll do a separate post tomorrow. However, I will share a few of them now. Not every scene was a traditional, three-dimensional Nativity Scene. Many were portraits capturing a single moment. Some were signs sharing the Good News. The items displayed were eclectic in nature and all were very sweet or deeply moving in their own way. It was an inspiring reminder of the reason for the season.

This was a sewn tapestry.

Be sure to read the inscription on the frame, too.

Another of my favorite portrayals of Mary as a new mother.

Mary and Joseph en route to Bethlehem.

I thought this drawing superimposed on sheet music from

The Messiah was so sweet.

Another, more complex tapestry.

Stylized, ornament-shaped embroideries depicting the Nativity.

After we explored the Nativities for about an hour, Sarah, Chris, Mark, and I went out for Mexican food at Aliberto's. Then we went our separate ways for the evening: they to their home, and Mark and I to do some shopping. And now, at last, I'm ready to plunge into the fun of holiday traditions and Christmas joy!

Love this.