The holiday season literally came crashing in this weekend. I was watching a movie, getting ready to get in bed, when what sounded like an explosion rattled the house.
Cheyenne and I went to investigate (Steve was visiting friends at the time and not here). I opened the back door, and there it was: a car on my carport. Problem was, it was not my car, it was still running, and it was sitting on top of the grandkids' bicycles and various gardening tools and implements.
I walked outside and started shouting for the driver, who was nowhere to be seen. All of a sudden I was hit by a spotlight coming from what appeared to be a combine sitting in my driveway, but turned out to be numerous squad cars from the county sheriff's department. They ordered me back in the house, and I called Steve.
Later we learned the driver had actually stolen the car (which was filled with funny smoke, if you know what I mean), shot at his girlfriend, and then led deputies on a chase which ended, obviously, on my carport. He tried to hide on the carport of one of the neighbors, and gave them quite a scare before they chased him off.
We are all OK, but my poor Radio Flyer is history.
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Thanksgiving was the beginning of the holiday mania for everyone this year, as it also marked the beginning of Hanukkah. Hubby Steve did not wait for Thanksgiving to start putting up the decorations. At one point, we had the harvest scarecrows on the same columns with the lighted candy canes, which was just plain weird.
But we got it all sorted out at last, with my nativity scene going up in the yard as the last of the decorating chores. Well, except for grandson Scott's lighted tree, and that will have to wait for Scott to visit.
As you know, the end of November marked the end of the National Novel Writing Month. I told everyone last month I was participating in the event, which challenges writers to complete a new story of 50,000 words or more in 30 days, starting Nov. 1 and ending Nov. 30. Well, I went over 50,000 on Nov. 20, earning a place in the winners' circle. My novella (because I don't consider 50,000 words a complete novel) is not finished, but I had to stop working on it because of the Thanksgiving holiday. However, I intend to finish the first draft this next week and then put that aside and start working toward finishing the historical fiction novel I started the year before.
This past Sunday was the first Sunday in Advent, which meant the lighting of the first Advent candle and the hanging of the greens during the church service. Other community activities, such as Lights of the Delta, which is already under way, and the various Christmas parades, will be taking place over the next few weeks.
But there are many community activities that no longer occur and that I really miss. One for which the entire community fought to keep was the coming of the Burlington Northern Santa Claus Express. The night that beautiful holiday train pulled into town each year brought thousands of people to Blytheville. It was a night of carols, festivities, special events and activities in the stores on Main Street, and of course the wonderful program put on by Santa and his helpers on the train.
Burlington Northern decided they no longer wanted to come this far south a few years ago, and that is just really a shame, because those memories are some of my favorite of the season.
Another Christmas event which no longer takes place is the Parade of Holiday Trees that always took place in the Kress Building. That stopped when the Kress became the Delta Gateway Museum. It involved most of the businesses and organizations in town decorating a tree in the Kress Building according to their own activities. The trees were judged and trophies given to the winners. And other holiday events, such as Breakfast With Santa and the awards ceremony for the residential, church and business holiday lighting contests, both of which also no longer happen, took place in among those beautiful trees.
There are still some wonderful things taking place in this community, but we don't need to lose any more of them. The only way to keep what we have as a community, and add others along the way, is for everyone to become involved in something. You don't have to stand out in the cold for hours directing traffic or hanging lights -- you could make phone calls or write press releases from your home. There is something everyone can do to make our community Christmas celebrations a blessing to everyone, so roll up your sleeves, pitch in and become part of the solution!
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