Quite the Same

Quite the Same
by Edie Rowland
from I'll Be Home for Christmas, published in 2005 by Xulon Press

“And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed…” (Luke 2:1). It’s the story everyone knows, and every year, when my mother’s rather large family gets together at Christmastime, one of the children will read it aloud.

These family get-togethers have changed a lot over the years. We once had them on Christmas Eve, but then as individual families grew, we moved the occasion to December 23rd. It used to be when I was young that the grandchildren read the story. Now, the grandchildren have children who read the story. My grandfather isn’t here to celebrate with us anymore, and my grandparents’ house with the big barn out back is no longer the setting for our parties, having been sold years ago. When I was small, everybody bought gifts for everyone, but as the family grew and finances shrunk, we evolved to our current practice – buy presents for the little ones, and the adults each bring a gift to play an always-entertaining gift-giving game.

People have come and gone over the years – due to dating and breakups, marriage and divorce, births and deaths. But one thing has remained the same. Every year, the Bible is opened to Luke chapter 2. And at some point in the evening, in a Linus-esque moment, everyone grows silent in reverence and awe as the gifts are ignored, the food left to get cold, and a child’s stammering voice takes us back to the manger where it all started. Traditions, circumstances, and even people change; however, the reason for our gathering and our celebration remains the same: the Christ child born to set us free.