Dear Nativity Director,
I was 12 that Christmas. You chose me to play Mary, mother of baby Jesus, in our nativity play.
From the looks of it, I didn’t think it was very cool to play Mary. Maybe I thought it was super uncool to be in a church nativity when I was TWELVE, maybe I thought it was gross to have to stand by the boy playing Joseph, maybe I thought that costume was lame and I was being polite but I really wanted to get out of it as quickly as possible.
But let me tell you, I’m grateful you chose me to be Mary that year. Because I never got the chance again, and I’ll never get the chance again.
You knew what I didn’t – it’s an honor to play Mary.
Mary embodies traits that are core to Christianity, traits I strive to emulate as an adult living out my faith in a real way, every day.
Faith. In every circumstance.
Obedience. When I’m called.
Trust. That He is in control.
Strength. To face any trial thrown my way.
Hope. That His best waits for me.
So thank you for giving me that one opportunity to be Mary. I didn’t appreciate the honor then, but I do now.
With a heart full of gratitude,
Amy
*If you’d like to read more from my #31Days Letters to the Unthanked series, click here for the landing page where all the letters are listed and linked!
Amy, this is beautiful. I never looked at it that way before – I had the same experience of being chosen to play Mary when I was younger, and crazy thing is, my outfit (which my Mom sewed) looked quite similar to yours in the same light blue with a purple headcovering. Thanks for opening my eyes to see a gift given to me long ago that I never recognized.
And that music video? Pure art. Love it.
Thank you, Kimberly! I’m so glad you found the post and were able to relate. For some reason, I didn’t feel I did Mary nor Jesus justice the moment I published this post, and it’s been bothering me ever since. It was one of those simple posts that was a little challenging to wrap words around. I did consider leaving it out of the series, but for some reason I knew it needed to be included. So today, I’m grateful for your comment. I’m glad the post opened your eyes to help you see “a gift given to [you] long ago that [you] never recognized.” Blessings to you, Kimberly!