The Quad has been lit!

"Christmas does not begin in our house until the Quad has been lit!" That's what Chad Jolly said at the Lighting of the Quad on Thursday night. And with that statement Chad changed the course of Ferguson Family Christmases. I love Christmas and I love tradition. Growing up, Christmas began in all its glory the day after Thanksgiving when we would put up our tree (usually artificial). I loved the ritual of the weekend. But in the Ferguson house our tradition is that we use a real tree, and if you put a real tree up the day after Thanksgiving, you are likely to have a messy, dried out fire hazard by Christmas morning. So we were looking for new tradition, a new ritual. Thank you, Chad. You gave us a new tradition . . . Christmas does not begin in the Ferguson house until the Quad has been lit!

For my non-William Jewell affiliated readers, I will tell you that Christmas time at William Jewell College is beautifully rich with tradition. The Lighting of the Quad happens every year on the first Thursday night after Thanksgiving. It is an evening in which many college alumni return to campus with their families and join students, faculty, and staff in Gano Chapel for a family oriented Christmas concert. Everyone then proceeds out to the Quad where we all hold candles (and much to Grant and Sophia's delight, the kids get glow sticks) and sing Silent Night. During the line "all is bright" the Christmas lights all around the Quad are switched on for the first time. Everyone then goes into the Union for cookies, hot cocoa, and a visit with Santa (played by my former boss, Rick). I have gone to the Lighting of the Quad every year for the past 12 years and every year it makes me nostalgic.

Yes, the Lighting of the Quad, is the perfect ritual to mark the beginning of Christmas. It turns out, though, that some rituals you have to grow into. Having a two year old and five year old in tow makes any ritual all the more tender, yet all the more real as well. Let me tell you about our night . . .

I should start by saying that Grant has some sensory issues that can make attending things like concerts a little challenging. One of these issues is that he has a hard time finding his whispering voice. He tends to need to say something aloud before he can switch to a whisper. When you are five and seeing a lot of exciting things that you just love like tubas, flutes, and drums, you tend to want to talk about these things to your mom and dad. You want to point out the color of the instruments, talk about their size, and say which play high notes and which play low notes. Needless to say, the wonderful people around us were fortunate enough to hear Grant's running commentary of the evening. We are unashamed . . . Lighting of the Quad is a family event. (I do have to admit, though, that I was thrilled each time I heard someone else's kid talk or cry during the concert. I was not alone.)

Another of Grant's sensory issues is that he does not like clapping. It hurts his ears and is a bit scary for him. You can imagine that a Christmas concert has a lot of clapping. While I used to find it a bit prudish that our church does not tend to clap after musical performance, this is a feature of our church services that I have come to appreciate. Clapping is not affirming or celebratory to everyone. Sometimes it is painful. (I will say that Grant has come a long way in being able to tolerate clapping. It takes a lot of concentration and deep breathing, but he can do it.) The concert began with a short skit by some student leaders, after which everyone clapped. Chad then went to the microphone and began his Christmas reflection with the suggestion that everyone give the students another hand. Grant promptly asserted that there were to be no more hands. He was quite direct in his assertion to the family sitting behind him. I was thrilled when after one particularly festive song Grant took his hands off his ears, clapped enthusiastically, and even gave a "Woot!". Honestly, tears came to my eyes. My eyes cleared as everyone stopped clapping and Grant announced loudly, "Time to go!"

For her part, Sophia did pretty well. Prior to going into the concert we ran into some friends who have an adorable one year old named Emme. Sophia was smitten with Emme and decided that she herself would like to be a baby. She spent most of the concert either cuddled on my lap telling me that she was a baby or crawling on the floor between Travis and I pretending to be a baby. I didn't complain . . . she was a relatively quiet baby. Sophia decided to transform into a big girl in time go play the jingle bells with the band during Sleigh Ride.

All day long the kids had looked forward to seeing Santa. They both knew what they were going to tell him to bring them for Christmas. While we were out on the Quad with our candles and glow sticks, who should appear on the roof of the Union but Santa himself and one of his Elves. Grant and Sophia were thrilled when they caught sight of him, until . . . "Ho! Ho! Ho!". If you have seen "A Christmas Story", think back to the scary Santa in the department store who tells Ralphie that he would shoot his eye out with a Red Rider BB Gun. Do you remember the way he growled "Ho! HO! HO!"? I have to admit this is a bit how our Jewell Santa sounded as he yelled into his bull horn from the top of the Union. Grant grabbed my hand and said, "I don't like it when Santa yells at us." When the time came, both kids sat on Santa's lap . . . kind of. Neither talked, smiled, or acted like the liked it in the least. They did though.

So, maybe this is a tradition to grow into. It was not a perfect night. Our children were not perfectly behaved. It still felt good though. We all had a great time. We spent time as a family, with our friends, in a place that we love, celebrating a season that means everything. It was worth the effort.

The Quad at William Jewell College has been lit. Tomorrow we get our family Christmas tree.