DEC 22, 2020: Some put up Christmas trees decked in beautiful shining ornaments. Some put up wreaths on their doors and gates. For some, it’s the nativity scene to celebrate the birth of Christ and at the same time looking forward to His Second Coming. There are so many ways we mark this joyous time of the year. This year more than any other, it is taking a lot more for us to set aside the gloom of the Covid pandemic and lockdowns, but still it is a time for us to celebrate.
We at Journey With Us – Asia are happy to present photos of the nativity scenes sent by our readers.
Here is a series of scenes sent by Anastasia Lourdes from Kuala Lumpur. She started out by setting the scene, which is Bethlehem. Crunched up brown paper for the terrain, with biodegradable paper take-away packs for houses with cut-out windows and the background is a black sheer material with lights behind to give the starry night effect.
And so Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem begins. The two of them are depicted as silhouettes in a jar that is lit inside. Each day the jar is moved closer to the centre of the scene where the stable is. The stable is where the little bits of straw is placed.
The final scene is when Mary and Joseph reach the stable and Baby Jesus is born and the Holy Family is depicted in silhouette against a flat glass in a frame with a light from behind – this was done by her daughter Rebecca Lawrence. You will see this and the earlier scenes in the following photos.
Penangites Yeoh Pheng Huat and his wife decided to create their own nativity scene using illustration done by their niece Dr Melanie Yeoh. The couple used a shoebox and added a tiny light on top of the stable to make it look like the Bethlehem star.
Here’s the video.
Benna, a Myanmar Catholic living in Kuala Lumpur, also used Dr Yeoh’s illustration to create her nativity scene.
This is AGG’s take on nativity scene. He coloured the illustrations digitally, printed them on transparencies, cut them out and stuck them on the board. Behind the figures is a wall with the names of all his loved ones to make it look like his family and friends are all around the crib – an Italian idea that he adopted.
Feel free to download Dr Yeoh’s illustration here.
Camden from Kuala Lumpur made this nativity scene using Italian-made figurines with local flora, and the fairy lights make it all so special.
