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From Revered Kate Bottley, Vicar of the churches of Blyth, Scrooby and Ranskill:

I thought I’d done so well and I thought I’d been super organised. Weeks before I usually start my shopping I ordered for my Godchildren the must have board game of Christmas. They were particularly difficult to get hold of and so I was thrilled when I found them for a good price, promptly ordered 5, when they arrived I felt slightly smug, I needn’t have, I unpacked them a few days later to wrap them ready for posting only to find I’d accidently bought the German language version of the game.

It didn’t matter, funny is funny in any language and this game is funny. Now, they don’t need me to give them a free advert, but just to say it ends up with someone getting lot of whipped cream in the kisser. We played it loads over Christmas with my own kids and our family, roaring with laughter when my bother in law Trevor, got hit so forcibly in the face that the squirty cream covered most of his bald head too. Christmas always brings a kind of beautiful mess and wonderful chaos.Ìý The nativity story is no exception a chaotic last minute journey, some make do accommodation and an emergency cot for the Baby born to the king of kings.

And while there is some debate, today, for most in the church, is twelfth night when all the decorations come down and the unruly behaviour of the Christmas season settles down again, and we and our homes return to some sort of normality. (Although if your family are anything like mine ‘normal’ is a relative term.) Some people look forward to the tree coming down and the chaos ending, and although I know it’s inevitable, when they are gone, I rather miss the crazy days of Christmas. Our family won’t pack all the chaos away tonight though, the nativity crib scene will stay until Candlemas in February, I’ll be finding pine needles until July and the fairy lights stay on the piano all year round, partly because I don’t like the knot they seem to get themselves intoÌý but mostly because I’m not ready for it all to be over, the joy, the hope, the laughter. Christmas at our house may be going back in it’s box tonight but it’s beautiful chaos and it’s light we hope will continue to shine all year round.

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