From the Mouths of Babes

"I’m Mary,” my three-year-old grand daughter told us. She arranged a silky scarf over her head and tried to fold her hands piously, but the scarf kept slipping off.  She grasped it in one hand and reached for her little brother. “This is Baby Jesus.” 

According to the song, "Joseph was an old man" so perhaps Grandpa can have that role in the picture.  Nine-month-old Alex was more interested in reaching for toys and standing by furniture than lying in an imaginary manger, so the pose didn't last very long.  Forget that “no crying he makes” part.

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Later while we girls soaked in the hot tub, Bella announced, "Jesus died on the cross."  Why he died—"For our sins”—required a little prompting.  We didn’t get into the gruesomeness of what a cross actually is, but I reminded Bella that Jesus is alive again so we can talk to him when we pray.  Afterwards Bella told Grandpa that Jesus is alive again, and wanted the stories that told about Baby Jesus from the pile of Christmas books on the coffee table. 

There is so much that she doesn't yet understand.  But her little heart is tender.  Now is the time to let blossom that love for the Jesus who didn't stay a baby in a manger .