I think that's probably how my obsession with nativities came to be. My grandma Thompson sold Avon when I was young. She mostly gave me and my sister lots of lip gloss and nail polish, but one year when I was about 8 years old, she gave me my first nativity. Just the figurines of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. It was an Avon set and you could purchase each additional set (the Wise men, the Shepherds, etc) separately. I eventually got the entire set and loved them. I still have them to this day. I loved them so much that when my grandma VanDenBerghe went to Mexico the next year, I asked her to buy me a nativity there.
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| My Mexican nativity that I received when I was 9 years old. |
And that's where it began. Luckily for me, my grandpa and grandma VanDenBerghe were big world travelers, so my collection grew quickly. They brought me nativities from Central America, Europe, and Asia, and one cherished set from Jerusalem. Later when they served a mission in the Philippines, I received a beautiful wood-carved set from Manila.
Years later, I began my own collecting. My search for the perfect Argentine nativity on my mission drove several of my companions crazy, but I finally found the perfect one. It is made of red clay like the earth that I walked for 18 months and it brings back so many cherished memories!
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| Although the band serenading Baby Jesus looks Peruvian, these were made in Northern Argentina. |
Okay, one last story. I lived in Venezuela for a semester. My host family was so wonderful and did everything that they could to make my visit enjoyable. I told them when I arrived that I wanted to find a nativity, but after weeks of searching, I realized that I wouldn't find one during the Spring and Summer seasons that I would spend there. On my last day with my host family, they presented me with a box. To this day, I have no idea how they managed this, but they had commissioned someone to create a nativity for me from banana leaves. BANANA LEAVES. Like, how cool is that?? I love it so much.
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| There is so much amazing detail in this nativity: the wise man with the painted black face, the halos on the holy family, and the basket holding baby Jesus. |
Imagine my happiness when Origami Owl introduced a nativity charm!! It is so perfect & beautiful. And best of all, they announced that they will have a new nativity charm every single year. It's like they know me personally. So, my favorite Origami Owl look this season has been just the nativity charm, all by itself, in a miniature locket. It's a perfect Christmas accent and gift.
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| Origami Owl mini locket with nativity charm |
Here are my beautiful sister, Alison, and my daughter, Gabriela, wearing this look and looking beautiful:
I hope that you enjoy Christmas as much as I do! (Except maybe without as many tears!) And that you will feel the Spirit of the Season in all of your celebrations! - Tracy
