Hideous Dwarf
Apprentice TOG
Campaign for Equal Heights
Posts: 70
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Post by Hideous Dwarf on Jul 31, 2008 21:03:09 GMT
This is a true story of last Christmas Eve. (I just scrape in a 249)
The Night Before Christmas
Twas the night before Christmas, and there were about twenty of us loaded into Lank’s sheep trailer. Elf & Shifty would have loved it. Carol books at the ready we toured the village to sing for the old folks. They gave us wine and we were all fairly pickled by half way round, the adults mainly but some of the kids looked a little flushed. And when Lank negotiated the steep bend at Beckstones the resultant heap of humanity in the back was bruised and battered but giggling merrily on high.
The last stop was Nora’s but at 94 she was too frail to come outside. Gail nipped in to bring her into the lounge and open the windows as the choir lined up below, children at the front and drunks to the back. Nora waved as the children sang 'Away In A Manger', the bass voices behind humming in a fair imitation of harmony, and as I looked in through the window I could see the tears of happiness rolling freely down Nora’s cheeks. We sang them all and passed our gifts through the window before leaving her to her family and to Christmas.
Nora passed away in the spring. The whole village turned out to bid her farewell. We all miss her. And come Christmas we’ll travel again in the old sheep trailer to sing carols for our elders and betters. And we’ll all be with Nora at the foot of a manger, remembering those happy tears.
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Post by Dinah Boordum on Jul 31, 2008 22:41:16 GMT
That was lovely HD - you managed to make me feel quite Christmassy in July!
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Hideous Dwarf
Apprentice TOG
Campaign for Equal Heights
Posts: 70
|
Post by Hideous Dwarf on Aug 1, 2008 7:21:14 GMT
That was lovely HD - you managed to make me feel quite Christmassy in July! It was a lovely moment that will remain with me forever in the mental treasury. Poor old Nora became too frail to care for herself and arrangements were being made for her to move into a home for the bewildered. Her children were very kind, sitting with her night after night, and she quietly approved of the arrangements, appreciating their efforts on her behalf. I heard just this last week ( that's why she came to mind for the story) that a friend asked her on a Tuesday if she was really sure about the move arranged for the following week. "It's fine," she said, "but I won't be going, you know." She passed away peacefully, in her sleep, on the Thursday.
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