'be born in us today'

           The morning of the 24th, Monika, Alina and I slept in until 10 and then had a Christmas brunch to celebrate before Monika left for home in Styrmark for the holidays. We ate a traditional Austrian breakfast, exchanged gifts, and talked alot about our families and Christmas traditions (naturally making me miss home)...and of course all this ended up taking 3 hours. We had to meet Christa and the kids to go to mass at 4:30, so we rushed to get dressed, finish Christmas presents and hurried out the door. Anton, Christa's husband, is recovering from a knee injury and so he stayed home to rest and prepare the house for Christmas that evening, while we helped Christa take the four children to the children's mass. It was absolutely packed! But, despite the crowd it was a beautiful mass complete with an adorable children's nativity play.
             After mass we walked 30 minutes into the city center in the rain and wind, practically dragging crying, cold children behind us, to the apartment of two women, friends of Christa's, who work for Human Life International in Vienna. They had invited Christa and her family to dinner so that Christa didn't have to worry about cooking with Anton indisposed, and so that they could all be together. It was a very simple dinner with lovely company and although it was very different from my traditional normal Christmas Eve and it was spent with a different family as a help in a stressful situation, I felt as if I was part of this new family and it was them helping me rather than me helping them. They taught me alot just by letting me see how simply being together was the important thing at Christmas for this family and their friends. Joy, Peace, Togetherness.

Klara

Klara and George

after dinner present time

George is my favorite....see photo shoot. 

Christa would be so mad I put this up, but I just think it is so funny! The flash of my camera was too much for him!

wearing their new presents

Er kam!

             Anton ended up suprising us by coming to dinner, and it was lovely to see the sacrifice he made to have his family all together. After dinner, the kids opened some gifts from the dinner hosts and then we were off, back to Christa and Anton's house. When the apartment was in sight, the kids were practically dragging me home as they bounded with excitement towards the apartment building wondering if Christkindl had come!   They ran up the stairs, impatiently waited for their father to open the apartment door, and ran into the house hoping to find a tree and some goodies. As we were taking off our coats and shoes they ran back to the entryway with an excitement that beamed from their every pore, screaming, 'Er kam! Er kam!'. They lead us by the hand into the living room where just the lights of the Christbaum, the candles in the advent wreath, and the light shining on the creche scene glowed. We all gathered in the dim light before the creche and the children lead us in 'Silent Night' (Stille Nacht) and then thanked Christ for bringing them presents and a tree. And then the lights went on for present time!!

George patiently waiting to see Alina's present

yes! sparkly shoes!

baby martin

Christa with Martin and George

barbies...loved in every country

                Of course, it was the normal chaos of present opening, children shouting, playing, sharing, running, etc. But, there was something beautifully simple about watching one little family do it...live Christmas...rather than my normal experience of my entire extended family all being together (not that I don't absolutely love it, and not that I didn't miss it with my whole heart). To watch the parents delight in their children's delight, to watch a mother sit on the ground and play with the new carpark and cars with her 3 sons, and to watch a father help his daughter put the shoes on her barbie. There was enough time to take in the kids excitement and to share it with them...it wasn't hurried or stressful or something the parents wanted to pack up or stop or get away from to do adult things as soon as they could. They were as excited as their children, and it wasn't because they too thought the barbie or the carpark was wonderful additions to the bounty of toys...it was because of love. 

               When the kids had settled into playing after the initial hour of excitement, Anton, Christa, Alina and I got to sit down and have tea (Christa even had Anton go into the storage closet and pull out her best tea glasses given to her at her wedding), Austrian christmas cookies (with some American ones as well...our Christmas gift to the family) and wonderful conversation by the light of the Christbaum and advent wreath. It felt so homey and family-like and remembering this moment I can say it was the only time that day I didn't actually think of what I was missing in the States, or compare it to what I would normally be experiencing at this time...I was just there, completely engulfed in the love that surrounded me, in the family that had made us their own this Heilige Abend, and the blessings that the Christ child had brought us along with the rest of the presents that evening. 

cookies, tea, and candles

the family...believe it or not this was the best we could manage!

Alina and I and die Kinder.

                   It was about 12 by the time we got home, and we had to catch a 7am train to Hollabrunn, a small town outside Vienna where Maria-Elizabeth's family lives. Finishing up some christmas cooking baking, wrapping, and making calls to our families, Alina and I didn't end up getting to bed until about 4:30...so thank the Lord that we actually woke up and made it to our train on time! 

                  Hurrying to get off the train in Hollabrunn, God gave me another Christmas gift. On the last step on the train I fell and badly twisted my ankle. Alina had already gotten off the train and the doors closed behind her as I lay on the ground in the train...looking back I'm sure it was a comical sight, but we were both so scared on our respective sides of the door that the train was going to leave with me, injured, still on it. So panicking I got up to open the door and then proceeded to fall into Alina on the platform...which is about the time that Maria-Elizabeth greeted us, rather confused about what was going on. Alina and ME helped me to the car and we went to her house so her mother, a nurse, could take a look at it and see if I needed to go to the hospital. Well, she thought it was broken, so ME's sister took us to the emergency room while ME and her father went to the church to get ready for the Christmas masses they were both singing in. The hospital was an interesting experince...complete with the x-ray man with a long ponytail and several earrings tell me that he thought he would die before he saw an american in Hollabrunn, and then when he placed the metal apron on my abdomen he looked at me very seriously and said to me in his best english yet....'This is for your children'. Oh Lord. 

                  Well, we made it to mass, me on crutches, and despite the pain it was one of the most beautiful masses I have ever experienced. The music in the beginning was from one of Mozart's masses sung and played by a talented choir (ME's father was singing!) and violins, cellos, organ, flutes, etc... The whole mass was sung as a latin high mass and every part that was sung by the choir you had to sit down for because what usually took 3 minutes took 10 minutes. The entire mass lasted an hour and forty-five minutes and with such beautiful music it wouldn't have been bad, if the church had been heated. Rather, from the minute you entered the church you could see your breath in huge clouds as you spoke or sang...so by the end, you were frozen, although this had a rather nice numbing affect on my foot. Katherina (ME's sister) translated the homily for me, which I was very thankful for!

                 After mass we went back to the house for Christmas dinner. As we waited for the final meal preparations, Josef (ME's brother) arrived and we all sat and talked and became acquainted. This down time was followed by a wonderful Christmas dinner although it was void of anything I recognized from my family's Christmas dinner table. After dinner, we all decided to take naps, and then at 4:30 we gathered again, refreshed by a warm cup of coffee and, of course, amazing Austrian christmas cookies. 

              Katherina hadn't napped but instead had gone over to a neighbors house to help the mother prepare some things for their Christmas, and then she returned with the three kids in toe, as she was in charge of getting them out of the house and distracting them while their parents set up their Christmas at their house. After they returned, we dimmed the lights, lit the candles at the creche scene, and LIT THE CANDLES ON THE TREE...REAL CANDLES....I couldn't believe it! And we all sang Christmas carols, even some American ones! As we ended the Christmas carolling around the tree with Silent Night (the traditional Austrian carol), they lit the SPARKLERS that they had hung on the tree!! Sparkler! It was so gorgeous...like 4th of July meets Christmas. And nothing burned down! 

**I have some wonderful videos of it all...but still cannot get them from my ipod to my computer...so if anyone can advise me how to do this without a wifi connection, let me know!!**

               After the tree, we exchanged gifts--they even had gifts for us which we weren't expecting since this was such a gift in itself to be celebrating Christmas with them! They gave us the most delicious chocolate--MozartKugel--and Bibles in German! ME's brother Josef lives on a ton of land in UberOsterreich near Halstatt and Bad Ischl, a region of Austria known for many lakes and forests and fertile land. He came with homemade wurst, cheese (several kinds), liquor, and jars of loose tea leaves--all fresh from the animals or land that he owns and cares for--and all for us! I was so in awe that he had made all of it! I couldn't believe it! 

              After Josef departed to drive back to UO and the children returned to their home to be greeted by their own Christmas surprises, we all sat down to a little snack for dinner and then gathered to watch the family's favorite movie--Hallo Dienstmann--an Austrian musical. Of course, I didn't understand anything, but it was still amusing to make up my own story to the images, as well as try to catch a few words here and there. But really, the best part was when ME and Katherina, and even Mr. and Mrs. (I don't know their last name) would break out into song WITH the movie!! (Truly a musical family!)

               After mass the next morning we had coffee and cookies with the priest and other parishoners and then the family drove us back to Wien on their way to visit their Oma and Opa. 

              All in all, a wonderful Christmas and I wish I had some insight or revelation to share with you to sum up everything, but for once, I am lacking completely anything of the sort. Just sending all my love to you and hope your Christmas was just as beautiful!