Busy time for kids

"They see me get out the book; and even though they've heard the stories before, they get all excited -- and the teachers do, too!" Ms. Langlois said, laughing.

The annual Christmas party for children in kindergarten through grade six includes games, crafts and food, but the highlight is the reading of stories like "Alabaster's Song" and "The Crippled Lamb."

In the first story, a little boy hears the voice of an angel on his Christmas tree. "The Crippled Lamb" is about a lamb left behind in a Bethlehem stable who ends up witnessing the birth of Christ. A third story explains the origins of the candy cane.

"I have a couple of new ones this year," Ms. Langlois added, admitting that she likes the stories as much as her eager students.

When The Evangelist spoke to the director, she was busily planning other Christmas activities, as well. She hoped to have children from the parish process into the 6 p.m. Christmas Eve Mass dressed in white, carrying electric candles and singing.

She was also debating asking ninth-graders to run the Christmas party. A half-dozen of them managed the parish Halloween party as a service project, and organized crafts and games. With that success under their belts, Ms. Langlois was confident they could handle another party, but she just wasn't sure she wanted to give up her "reading duties."

"They did a great job!" she noted.

(12-19-02) [[In-content Ad]]