Paper Nativity

Sometimes, as happened this afternoon, when I walk downstairs, the paper Nativity a friend sent me for Christmas years ago stops me. I'm not sure whether it's the glint of the star in sunlight, the rich blue in the main arch, the simplicity of the design, or what, but the scene calls my attention.
I have always loved cut and folded paper designs: paper dolls (with which I played many hours in my childhood), paper theatres, Asian paper marionettes and shadow puppets, my marbelized Origami-folded Florentine creche, my mother's silhouette, the wonderful pup-up books designed by Robert Sabuda, the controversial silhouettes of Kara Walker.

I'm not sure what the attraction is, but I do know this: I admire the minds and hands of those who can simplify and snip the line of beauty out of the chaos of living.