So,
I've been pondering all this Christmas "Aura".
I posted about it in my last post and then since then I was asked to create a Nativity Scene for the school Hall. "Oh Boza" (Oh, god). I said right away. NO, I just can't do it. My Unitarian Universalist self just couldn't put up an image that was so Christian related in a school with such religious diversity. Besides that at School I'm pretty sure they think I'm more Jewish then Unitarian so It was pretty strange to be given this task.
Yes, I am the art teacher...anyway...So, the discussion got deeper and deeper and perhaps worse and worse. The next day went on and I didn't see the teacher (who is religiously and spiritually Catholic). I think she must have been avoiding me. Sort of sad because I feel like we have connected in ways that we can talk about spirituality openly and I know that we are both spiritual people.
I did send her an e-mail that night saying that I'm sorry we are not looking at this the same way but I hope in the future we can work together. I also included this text...
The work of Christmas:
When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and the princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flocks,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
-Howard Thurman. African American Theologian
Then, the next evening I came home and decided to listen to a Unitarian Universalist (UU) Sermon on-line. I do this sometimes. They are from the new ministers in the church I grew up in. It was:
| Believing is Seeing: A Lesser Known UU Act of Faith by Parish Co-Minister Scott Tayler | streaming download | December 4, 2005 |
"we see things are we are, not as they are" - Anais Nin
So, right on. I was seeing the manger from my eyes of course and not from the fact they the school was putting on a "Christmas Concert" if I liked it or not. So, while listening some more, I got on-line and just googled manger scenes just to see what one looks like. I mean I know, I made them in Church at a teen. I just wanted to sedifferentnt ways that it was represepnted. Then, I did some other searches with Christmas and Poland and then...there it was... a Traditional Polish papercutting of the Nativity Scene. I had it. I LOVE papercuttings and felt like it would be great to show the nativity scene in this way. I got out some small paper and started to cut. After the little one was done. I was on a roll and new that big white paper would be around the house, so I looked around and found some old big Calender posters with images on one side and white on that back. I taped 2 together ( it was about the side of 2 small kids).
Then, folded the paper in half, drew out half the image and started to cut, cut, cut as our little cat was crawling all over everything, little paper pieces all over the place. Olga walks in the door and was like "what are you doing?", I said it came to me! Just a minute and you will see!
She saw it and new what it was right away.
[ on a side note. I showed it to my Jewish friend in Poland and she thought it was something about some sort of table with something on it. It is so true how we see things how WE are, or how we were raised, with words and images surrouding us. The Nativity scene isn't as common as mud to everyone, which is refreshing for sure!]
...So, the next day I got up early, went to school before the big "Christmas Fair" and stuck the paper cutting on red paper and then onto the Schools Hall wall...walked a way and didn't say a word to anyone about it for a couple days, then I printed out text about paper cutting and the Polish history put it next to the art and signed my name. Ms. Evonne
On the last day of school before break, the music teacher came up to me and said Thank you, just a simple:
thank you.
I went to my little office and what was on my desk? A little handmade card with candles on it and inside: Happy Chanukah Love, Katazyna (the music teacher)
...and the story goes on. While all this was happening I was trying to get the schools aims and philosophyhy statement to see if they were Christmasan based. Got it and nothing about religion at all. So, I wrote a little e-mail saying I was surprised about all the very Christmas things happening at school. Didn't get any e-mails back. Then saw the women in school I was e-mailing and voiced my concern. She was interested in my thoughts about how to make the Holiday Season more inclusive. I said her some of my ideas and we will be talking more inthe new year!
What does your baggage look like? and where are you going?
It's so important to know what we travel with.
I have to remind myself of this too.
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