Found this batik I made years ago in one of the boxes of Christmas decorations in the cellar. I brought it upstairs and really looked at it and had one of those “Huh! I’m amazed I made this” moments. That made me laugh.

This batik wall hanging really makes me happy. It’s a depiction of the final scene from the opera “Amahl and the Night Visitors” by Gian Carlo Menotti. These are the 3 Kings, or Wise Men. In the foreground is a lad called Amahl. He was a poor peasant boy who was lame and needed a crutch to walk. The Wise Men stop at his home on the way to Bethlehem and during their visit, his faith miraculously heals him. Amahl asks if he can go along with the Kings on their journey so he can give his crutch he no longer needs to the Child they are looking for. He is carrying the parrot who belongs to one of the Kings. There is a really funny moment in the opera when the King shows Amahl the parrot and Amahl asks “Does it bite?” with just the perfect intonation of fear and curiosity.

This opera was a staple of our family’s Christmas season. These days it would have been playing on a continuous loop, but back then, we were listening to a vinyl record which needed to be flipped over half way through. We really loved this record.

So just a Show and Tell. I wanted to show this piece to you and share a bit of our family’s Christmas tradition. Go find a recording of this opera…it’s in English and it’s really a lot of fun.