Every Christmas Eve Piper, Sissy, and their cousins put on a holiday program. The planning takes the entire week leading up the event. There are negotiations and rehearsals. There is a band, interpretive dances, sing-a-longs, poetry readings, mini-dramas, etc. The Bible is read. The 12 Days of Christmas is performed. We try to limit the holiday program to under an hour. Sometimes we need an intermission.

This year, charades were added. When it was Piper’s turn she obediently sat in a chair in the middle of the circle and asked questions.

“Am I a girl or a boy?”

“Boy!” the crowd roared back.

“Am I an animal?”

There was a pause. “Technically, yes,” someone called out.

“Do I like Christmas?”

“Yes!”

Piper squinted her eyes and assessed the family. “Am I real or fake?”

“REAL!” we all shouted.

“I know,” Piper exclaimed, jumping up from her chair, “I’m Santa Claus!”

And the crowd went wild.