Young Friends
Catherine Henderson selects a book for young people and shows how to make some decorations
Refuge
Do you have favourite Christmas books that you get out each year? I have just found a new one to add to my collection. It’s called Refuge, and it’s the story of the nativity told from the point of view of the donkey.
It’s the kind of picture book that takes you into another world – with a very simple text and illustrations that set your imagination working.
We see the donkey with Mary and Joseph, travelling through the landscape, looking small under the cold stars. We all know the story of what happens when they arrive in Bethlehem and no-one will give them shelter, until a kind innkeeper offers them a stable.
When Joseph has a dream warning that they are in danger, they have to escape with the new baby to Egypt. They hope to be helped again as they were in Bethlehem – they hope for ‘the kindness of strangers’. Fleeing from Bethlehem, they become refugees.
They are looking for somewhere safe to live, a refuge, and, like Mary and Joseph, throughout history people have fled with their families from danger, often from war. Today, millions of families have had to leave their homes and travel, frequently on foot and for many weeks, to reach a place of safety. Like Mary and Joseph they have no shelter and have to sleep outside in the cold. Many end up living in refugee camps, hoping they will be able to return home when it is peaceful again.
Some come to countries like ours, hoping, just like Mary and Joseph, for a warm welcome. Perhaps there are families like this in your town, and children in your school, who have had to leave their homes and make a new life here.
Refuge by Anne Booth and Sam Usher is published by Nosy Crow at £7.99 in support of refugees and the charity War Child. ISBN: 9780857637710.
Stars and jars
Christmas can be a good time to make decorations and presents using things you have at home and recycling things that might otherwise be thrown away. Here are two ideas: a star mobile and jam jar lanterns – the cold wintry night outside and the welcoming warmth inside.
Silver stars
To make a star mobile you need a large twig (mine is about 40cm across but any large twig will do); some foil trays or thick foil packaging (ordinary tin foil is too thin); a ballpoint pen or sharpened pencil; a large needle, such as an embroidery needle; scissors and some thread. Put your foil on a smooth, firm surface and draw a star design on it with the pen or pencil. It will leave a dent rather than a mark. Cut out your star and draw patterns into it, pressing firmly so that the patterns stand out on the other side of the foil. This is called embossing and is a very old method of making a pattern in metal. You can also prick patterns in your star using the needle. Finally, thread the needle and push it through one of the points of the star, tie the star to the thread and the thread to your twig. You can hang as many stars as you like on your twig, then hang it up and watch them turn and catch the light.
Jam jar lanterns
Jam jar lanterns make great presents for friends and family – we like having tea with all the lights off and just the lanterns on the table. Any jam jar will do – some are fancier than others. You can soak the labels off in cold water, then dry the jars and decorate them with glass paints or pens. If you like, work out some patterns and designs on paper first. You will need a little ‘night light’ candle in each jar.
Crossword answers (see ‘Quaker crossword’)
Across: 1. George Cadbury. 5. Penington. 7. Margaret Fell. 12. Elder. 14. Religious. 15. Lie. 16. Ministry. 19. Rowntree. 20. Long. Down: 1. Glad. 2. Gun. 3. Can. 4. Yearly Meeting. 5. Peace. 6. Off. 8. God. 9. Tapestry. 10. Equal. 11. Overseer. 13. Roots. 16. MFW. 17. Not. 18. Do.
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