Go Beyond

Christmas is a time that naturally lends itself to telling stories. When my kids were little they often acted out the Christmas story — borrowing a doll for the role of baby Jesus and crafting shepherds costumes out of bathrobes. Telling and retelling stories is a key learning tool that helps kids to think about the meanings of a story and, ultimately, to embrace values we hold dear.

In these final days before Christmas, I encourage you to consider adding a couple of stories to your conversations around the dinner table. Each of these stories that I recommend add their respective heartwarming lessons about the wonder of Christmas and the potential of Christmas to bring people together. And, they each remind us that there is a dimension to Christmas that runs much deeper than most folks ever stop to consider.

The first of these stories is about something remarkable that happened on the first Christmas of the First World War. The story of the Christmas Truce of 1914 illustrates the power of Christmas to bring people together, even soldiers at war. I posted a blog in 2011 about this spontaneous and extraordinary event. I hope you’ll take a moment to read it and to consider sharing it with your family over the holidays. Because the context of this story is war, be sure to use age-appropriate language when telling this story to younger children. The story of The Christmas Truce is one that should be told and retold.

The second story that I recommend is one that was written and shared by John Henry Faulk, one of the Lone Star State’s premier storytellers. Faulk first shared this story in 1974 on the National Public Radio program, Voices in the Wind. NPR pulled the story out of its archives in 1994 and rebroadcast the story at Christmas. So many listeners enjoyed it that NPR has rebroadcast this heartwarming story every year since then. Faulk’s Christmas story is one of my favorites.

You can read about John Henry Faulk’s Christmas Story on my Explore Texas Blog. I have included a link to the original 1974 broadcast that features Faulk himself telling the story. Gather your family around your computer or mobile device and listen to this wonderful story. Remind your kids that in the days before television, families would gather around the radio to listen to news and stories like Faulk’s.

I hope you enjoy these stories. And, I pray that you and your family have an absolutely wonderful Christmas.