A New Christmas Tradition with my Nativity Sets

Over the years there have been different things that I have and have not been able to handle during the holidays.  One of those things I have not been able to handle is the nativity sets I have.  For me it has been a triggering reminder that my baby/babies did not live.  I wrote about a couple of years ago how I had to change our tradition of putting the full nativity set up all at once at the beginning of December because it was too hard for me to see.  Instead we start with an empty manger and then each week for 7 weeks during our family home evening lessons we talk about 1 figure and what they represent and then place that figure into the set.  It starts with Mary all alone and then by Christmas we finally add the baby Jesus. 

I like having the nativity set put up this way, although it may look a little strange to those who visit my house, because then the scene reflects my life as all the figures are gathered around an empty manager where there is no baby until Christmas when the figure of baby Jesus is finally added to complete that set.  This year we continued to put that upstairs set together like that. 

This year I feel like I have more of a handle on seeing the nativity set than I have the past 6 years.  This year instead of seeing it only as a reminder of my loss babies, I see it as a reminder of the hope I have that one day I will be reunited with my angel babies because of the gift of resurrection that Jesus gave to all of us.  This year seeing that little baby Jesus figurine represents hope instead of sorrow to me.  Because of that I decided to dig out all of the little nativity sets I have had hidden away in boxes collecting dust for the last 6 years.  I temporarily put books away that I have on a downstairs bookshelf so I could use the whole bookshelves as my nativity display case.  I even bought a few more nativity sets that I found on sale.  I was surprised by how many I have, but, I love them all now.  It has been so nice to be able to pass by this bookshelf and smile as I see all those sets because it has been an amazing step forward on my grief journey to be able to see the nativity scene as a scene of hope and joy for me instead of sorrow. 

I have more book shelves down by this book shelf, and my goal is to collect even more nativity sets so that one day in the future I will have the tradition that in Dec. all the books go into storage and everyone of those shelves will be filled with different nativity sets. Some of my favorite sets I have are the ones that spell the words believe and joy with the nativity figures.  I'm hoping some day to find some nativity sets with the words hope and peace.  I guess this will be a new hobby for me, but, it is a nice hobby that will remind me of the joy and peace I will one day enjoy as I am reunited with my angel babies all because of that precious little baby Jesus whose birth we celebrate and remember at Christmas and in each of these nativity sets.