NEWS photo Cindy Goodman

Phat ons eecseseeeeeeee SOME
Age. ...ageless
Book..............4 Ghristmas Carol
Likes...........good boys and gizis
Dislikes......... leaning up
after Rudolph

Future plans ...holiday in Howell

From page 48

dishes and platters of steaming.
hot kippers, sausage, cari
bread and syrup.

All through breaktast dad
waited apon mother as
though once again she was his
new bride, interrupting his
devotion only to retreat to the
kitchen to refresh his coffce
with a nip of rum.

After breakfast dad
unlocked the den, and mother
leading, the family positioned
themselves around the tree, a
Douglas fir reaching to the
ceiling, all aglow with colored
lights, and at the base a heap
of multicolored presents of all
shapes and sizes.

Dad always commenced
the distribution of presents by
playing a joke on us, directing
Donald to admit che family
pets separately, stardag, with
Felix che black family cat.
Upe.. entering the den, Feliv
began sniffing about the uee,
then catching a whi? of some-
thing tasty, stood on his hind
legs, reached up a paw and
brought down 2 smali white
package tied loosely on a
branch.

Thereupon Dad © said,
“Larkin, see if he gor the right
one,” and sure cnougit, there
on the tag it said, “Yo Felix,
from Santa Claus,” and inside
was a strip of kippered her-
ting. Well, it was nothing
short of miraculous, and we
all thought, “What a clever
cat!”

Then Nick was admitted.
Straightaway, he too, began to
sniff about the tree, reached
up with his forepaws, this time
a little higher than Felix, and
down came a larger parcel. Lo
and behold, on the tag it said,
“To Nick, from Santa.”
Another miracle! But this time
inside was a meaty bone. Well,
it certainly tested credulity, |

north shore news

_CHRISTMAS

Clever pets rewarded with gifts

mean, the same mtirickes year
after year without fail!

There was only ene expla
nation ~~ obviously, eur fan
fy had the smartest pets
around!

‘Yaking one parce] at atime
from under the tree, dad

“Christmas
dinner was a
blend of joy,

winter birthday
party, and a dab
of reverence, the
one meal of the
year that mother
felt moved to
open with
prayer.”

would announce, “Well, well,
what do we have here? It says
“3 gift from Santa to Larkin,”
whereupon all) attention
would tur to Larkin as he
unwrapped nis gift. Then
Larkin would get up and give
a big kiss to Mom and Dad.
Santa’s gifts always includ-
ed practical items like a new
sweater, socks and pajamas,
along with a favorite play-
thing—new skates, a hockey
stick or soccer ball — and one
indoor game, like Chinese
checkers or pick-up-sticks.
Mother received a new
evening gown or housecoat,
slippers, perfume, a huge box

of checolates, and something
for the kitchen. Dad usually
got a new cardigan sweater,
shirt, slippers and box of cig-
Ars.

When the gifts were all dis-
tributed, we all helped clean
up the breakfast dishes, then
we boys scattered to enjoy our
hew games while mom and
dad prepared dinner. Freida
and Ling always had thar week
off, leaving for their own fam-
ilies and frends with a present
or two and a cheque for as
much as mom and dad could
aftord.

Christmas dinner was a
blead of joy, winter birthday
parny, and a dab of reverence,
the one meal of the year thar
mother felt moved to open
with a praver,

We could tell she was sin-
cere, her voice quivering with
emotion as she began, “Let us
all bow our heads in prayer.
Quer Heavenly Father, we
thank ‘Thee for Thy merciful
Lonat..” bur before long she
would choke up, tears coming
to her eves. We waited for her
to gather the strength to go
on.

Heads bowed, we waited,
and we waited, experiencing
with her a strange, uncom:
fortable mixture of emotions
— gratitude, humility, love, all
jumbled together like the pre-
sents under the tree, until
finally, she came to a fitting
place to say, “Amen.”

It was a wrenching ordeal,
but once mother said the
magic word “Amen” she
seemed teansformed.
Whatever her spiritual burden,
it vanished, and she became as

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jolly as dat.

Christmas dinner was like
no other of the year, It srarted
off quite Niterally with a
“Bang!” For at each place
there was a Christmas cracker,
a roll of colored paper the size
of a napkin, which, when
pulled smartly from both
ends, opened up with a fire-
cracker bang, and our popped
a colorful paper hat in the
shape of a bird or animal -— a
yellow duck, a red rooster, a
golden pheasant, a rabbit, a
donkey or giraffe.

Around the table the fami-
ly becan:e a comic menagerie
of quacking ducks, crowing
roosters and various ngisy
beasts, all to great laughter
and joshing.

Then dad carved the
turkey, dexterousiy casing one
slice after another onto a large
platter, and invariably saying
to mother, “Bell, you have
done this bird just right,” to
which she would invariably
rephy “LE hope vou like the
SWEET potatoes.”

Her reply was appropriate,
as Christmas dinner was the
one meal of the vear for which
she prepared candied sweet
poratoes, a fitting dish indeed,
with cranberry sauce and
giblet gravy.

Then came plum pudding
and hard sauce, then cleanup,
then games in the living
room, then, one by ane, off to
bed.

Another Christmas had
come and gone. Once again
mom and dad had attained 2
beloved and heroic stature; we
all felt safe and together tor
another year.

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