Western Morning News (Saturday)
On Saturday An utterly charming staging of nativity story
LET’S face it, the commercialisation of Christmas has really taken over the true sacred meaning of the birth of Christ.
From the end of September, there’s a slow creep of advertising and all that it brings. Supermarkets start selling mince pies when we’re barely through barbecue food. Kids are confronted with Advent calendars in October.
It was, therefore, a real treat to find a truly authentic celebration of the birth of Jesus recently. Hubs and I had our grandchildren over from the States and decided to take them to one of our favourite go-to children’s entertainment places: Pennywell Farm, near Buckfastleigh, in Devon.
The farm has won a spectacular range of awards from a variety of tourism organisations and green tourism for their work. They’ve pulled out all the stops during this festive season and are holding a special Christmas entertainment for kids. It’s entitled “Experience the Magic” and it about sums it up.
We arrived, somewhat cynical, I’m afraid, expecting to be greeted by blaring old and tired commercial music. Instead we were ushered through a path lined with real Christmas trees to the “North Pole” – a barn with straw bales and a huge red sleigh. An elf offered outfits – sheepskins for sheep, angel robes, kings capes, the lot.
After the fun of choosing clothes, we were led through to the first of several settings where the children were invited to come up and reenact the nativity story the narrator told. A donkey stood tethered in the corner, and we adults sat on straw bales as the wide eyed “cast” listened or watched.
As the nativity story unfolded, we moved from barn to barn, looking for an inn before landing up in the stable. The setting was utterly charming, the only background noise was the bleating of sheep and the snuffling of other creatures who looked on as we were invited to sing a verse from several Christmas carols.
The narrator asked us to think of what we had been given, to be thankful for a few moments for all our gifts, not just the gift of Jesus. It wasn’t a heavy, hard-sell religious sermon, just a few quiet words. And in the middle of the Christmas turmoil it was a chance to think of those less fortunate than ourselves.
In those few simple moments, we were given the opportunity, adults and kids alike, to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. It was nothing to do with denomination, more the chance to spend a few moments to share gratitude for all we had.
When the nativity story was over, families could enjoy a tractor ride looking for gingerbread men in the fields. A range of free refreshments followed, including home-made shortbread Christmas trees and sweeties from the elves’ sweet shop. Petting small animals was a huge favourite – nothing quite like cuddling a baby piglet!
Of course, the highlight was seeing Father Christmas, visiting for a brief few days before getting back to work with his elves. It was the loveliest of grottos. Nothing tacky, no blaring music, and the gifts given were made to last and not get sucked up in the hoover within hours!
There’s something magical about the whole setting at Pennywell. Maybe it’s the fact that the owners say a prayer together each morning before the farm opens. I only know that because the founder, Chris Murray, told me. He set up the hands-on interactive farm in 1989 and it has gone from strength to strength.
The power of Love certainly came through at the Christmas celebrations. The whole occasion was very moving, so special. It was sweet, meaningful, respectful and for those few hours gave a real feeling of what Christmas was all about. It was a nourishing experience and everyone I spoke to felt the same.
Taking a few moments to be reflective, whether it’s about Christmas or life generally, is something we don’t often allow ourselves to do. Life is just too busy, too important to stop and think about things for many of us. Think about what? Well, gratitude for one thing.
Thinking of those people in war zones, those who are hungry, starving, homeless, sick, lonely, frightened – all those millions who are in that category in our ‘civilised’ world that it’s so easy to forget about as we hurtle round, head full of here-today, gone-tomorrow thoughts.
Being grateful is a huge leveller. Grateful for all the things we have, from the smallest things to the big things is so important. And even more important is saying a quiet little “thank you” for those things, however big or small. It’s amazing just how much those few things suddenly prioritise your life.
That’s what the visit to Pennywell Farm did for us. It made us mindful of the millions in the world who, because of their circumstances, would never know the peace and joy that the visit brought to us and so many others. We felt very grateful.
Visit www.pennywellfarm.co.uk/ buy-christmas-nativity-tickets for details of the Christmas experience, which ends on December 24. Tickets must be booked in advance online.
‘It was meaningful, respectful and for those few hours gave a real feeling of what Christmas was all about’