Unfortunately, I have never been as small as I was when I married. So my attempt at wearing my dress took a drastic turn. Since there was no possibility of smushing my body into the bodice of my dress, I decided to remove the skirt portion and wear it as a "poncho". I think it did the trick. It made me look like a little round angel - but it was fulfilling a need.
We were told to be prepared for cold weather so I wore white thermals and my Wyoming boots beneath my angel gown. We were also told to be prepared to do a lot of waiting - which we did.
When all the volunteers were gathered, we were handed a ticket and entered an area that had been marked off with plastic fencing. All the volunteers gathered on the hillside and then the nativity props were brought in. The nativity consisted of a sheep, a donkey, a camel, three wisemen, Joseph and Mary, and a newborn infant. The nativity volunteers were made up of popular on-line bloggers and they led the whole group in singing a few Christmas hymns. Following that, the representative from the Guinness Book of Records announced our numbers and that we had in fact broken the record for the largest gathering to create a Live Nativity. Whooot!
After the record was set, all the volunteers received further direction in order to create a music video. Included in the music production were: The Piano Guys, Alex Boye`, David Archuleta, the Shaytards and members of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. A newborn represented the baby Jesus to begin with, but when it became too cold, the focus was then on the angels. We gathered again on another hillside with fog machines and practiced singing the song. It was cold and our feet got stuck at an angle because we stood on the hillside for so long!! There ws sooooo much video that did not get in the final edit, but we were all happy to be there. The gentleman standing near me had a close up of his hands holding his candle, but it isn't in the final edit. Another group of youth near me also had a close up of one of them crying - but it also did not make the final edit. I was actually sad that the full effect of the angels in the clouds didn't show well in the final production, but recognize that this is the way filming happens. There is a lot of material filmed, but a lot gets left behind on the edit room floor.
We also worked on the field to create a silhouette of the nativity. This was the trickiest part of the whole production!! As the sun went down, the winds from the canyon (we were at Rock Canyon Park in Provo) kept taking the camera off center and caused interference in the creation of a good silhouette. So we took a break, hoping the winds would die down. There was tent set up where we could get warm, eat a variety of foods and have some hot chocolate. We were all praying the winds would cooperate. Of course they did!! We were working on a very important piece of material! What should have concluded at 6:00 pm took until after 10:00 pm. Following the filming, the musical professionals agreed to hang around if individuals wanted to meet them. Although I am a big fan of Alex Boye` I was sooo cold and tired, I just wanted to go home and take a hot shower!! I had accomplished what I set out to do. I was able to spend the entire time amongst a large crowd of people without giving up and leaving for shelter AND I was spiritually filled.
This is the final production. I was just a little round angel, but I was there singing as well as one can when freezing and feeling the spirit. I was there, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the newborn King!
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