The Big Timber Pioneer (Big Timber, Mont.) 1983-current, December 19, 2003, Image 15

Page 16 — BIG TIMBER (MT) PIONEER — V/eek of December 19-25, 2003 The live Nativity scene at the Congregational Church December 11 was as popular as ever. Depicting the arrival of the famous visitors from the East are, left to right, Tom Nordquist as Joseph, Shirle Nordquist as Mary, Art Sell, Doug McCann and Dave Christensen as the Three Wise Men. • (Cindy Pitts Photo) Xm a s o b s e rvan c e banned in 1644 There vvtts a time when Christmas went underground. People who advocated Christmas were in danger of arrest and impris­ onment and it looked as though Christmas was on ns way out. It all happened around I644 when the Puritans in England for­ bade anv merriment or religious services, by act of parliament, on the giound it was a heathen festival. What resulted was much grumbling, breaking of the law and a Christmas underground which wrote and dis­ tributed pamphlets in favor of Christinas In 1648. foi instance, was pub­ lished \Canlcihury Christmas.\ This pamphlet gives an account of the subsequent proceedings after the Crycr of Canterbury had upon Wednesday, December 22. \openly proclaimed that Christmas day and all other superstitious festivals should be put downc, and a market should he kept on Christmas day. Which being not observed (but very ill taken by the country) the town was thereby unserved with ptoviston and trading very much hampered; which occasioned great discontent among people, caused them to rise in a rebellious way.\ Among the rarest of the pam­ phlets issued at that tune is entitled “The Examination and Trval of Old Father Christmas.\ In tins little vol­ ume. “one old Christmas was com­ manded to be brought to the Bar, then was a jury lor Life and Deal it to he impaneled ’’ \The Judge was called Judge Hatc-batc. the Sheriff’s name was called Leonard Lovc- pcacc.\ In the end Christmas is acquit­ ted. hut is cautioned by Judge Halc- bate. \for avoiding all such scandals as have been cast upon you for the future, do think fit to abandonish you. that you remember your Office is not so much to feast the Body, as to fresh the soul, by thankful and pious Meditations.” Charles II re-established Christmas in 1678 and \jolly Old Father Christmas” has never had to stand trial since. Reprinted from the December 25, 1952 issue of the Hig Timber Pioneer. C h r i s t m a s C a r d Q u a n d r y By DAN NOKDINK We gave up sending Christmas cards many years ago. Christinas cards are a nice tradition They serve to keep you aware of the many people who have somehow been a part ol vour life o\cr the years Some ol the cards are from Inemls. neighbors ami relatives you see on a regular basis, others arc from people who have once been in your life and are now more of a memory I always enjoyed gening ihe cards, but was never a real big fan of sending them. Deb. my wife, and 1 tried that route when we were first married. We made up our list of those we were going to send them to. diligently signed the cards, addressed the envelopes and licked stamps until we were ready for a stomach pump. Most of the cards were in the mail with time to spare,. But not all of them... It never failed, once the list was complete (or so we thought) and the cards were in the mail, the very next day would bring cards in our mailbox from people we hadn't thought about in years. Maybe an old friend, and acquaintance or a distant relative. That evening we would open up the list, add the new name and prepare another card for the mail. As we mailed the new card the following morning and picked up our mail for the day. lo and behold. There would be another one. Somehow wc had forgotten another person or family When I think hack on it now, we rcal/y hadn’t forgotten these people. Most o f the time they were from a person or family wc had had little to do with in our past If not for the card they sent us. we may never have remembered they existed. But we dutifully sent the card And as we picked up our mail the following morning- von guessed it1 This went on for a lew years until finally we began to ignore the cards that came from the more obscure corners of our memorable past. Once we did that the cards stopped coming The trouble with it all was once wc started leaving names off our list we began to feel guilty. What if the people wc eliminated from the list thought wc did so because wc weie mad at them. Or what if they thought we were just being snobs! So we decided it was better to quit sending the cards altogether With tunc, we also began to receive fewer cards each year We have now sealed ul u point where newer acquaintances may send us a card, hut the following year we don’t get one from them. It just got to he too hard to keep up. Maintaining a list almost had to be done on a year round basis in order to make sure everyone who should be included, actually was included. And it gels hard to think about Christmas cards in July when the thermometer is pushing 100 degrees. Wc still get one card every year. It comes from a long-time friend of mine, a hunting and fishing buddy of many years. Wc never actually did a lot of hunting and fishing together, vve sort of claim the “buddies\ status because wc swapped stories on a weekly basis for close to 25 years. I don’t return one. hut he sends me a card every year. His card is always one of those Fhoto-Chnsimas cards you can get wherever you have film developed The card itself is always very unique I recall one card where he hud placed his Springer Spaniel hunting dog. who was also Ins best friend, on a stool A bowl was placed on ihe dog’s head and a towel around his neck. At his feci laid an electric trimmer and a pair ol scissors and a comb On the wall, behind the dog. was a sign which said. \Haircuts - One Bone!\ My friend is also a ham radio operator and on another occasion photographed the dog stttmg at the ham radio station with a headset covering his ears The microphone was placed on the desk in front of the dog and his paw was placed on the mike switch. Printed below the photo were the words. “Merry Christmas from radio station K-9.” My friend works as a county sheriffs deputy and in 1995 was involved with emergency procedures during a tornado that hit the county scat. He took time out from his duties to snap a photo of the funnel as it went directly behind the county courthouse This was last year’s Christmas card and it read. “Just another day at the Sheriffs Office.” Now as Christinas approaches, wc look forwaid co his card I can’t help hut wonder how he is going to keep topping the previous year, bui he always does. If I don’t get one this season. I may have to consider sending curds again At least one card1 Reprinted from the December 20, 1996 issue of the Rig Timber Pioneer. D i s t r i b u t i n g g i f t s Going to the post-office is a jolly method of distribution. Pasteboard and brown paper, aided by judicious grouping of chairs and tables, easily transform’s a room into a post-office, and a wisely selected postmaster may make the collection of mail an occasion of much merri­ ment. Have general delivery and lock boxes, and at the general deliv­ ery window see that each person is properly identified. A Christmas hum is always exciting. The clue, given at the breakfast table, is written on a slip of paper in some such words as these \Pass the parlor, shun the hall, seek the summer kitchen wall \ In that vicinity the gift will he found, wrapped and addressed. It adds to the fun if the directions lead first to other rhymes, three or four being followed up before the treasure is found. The cobweb party is not new. but is always good sport ami is especially adapted to Christmas festivities. The tangled threads may lead to the laden tree or to the bulging stocking hanging from Ihe mantel-shell' Still another hunt lakes the form of a polar expedition and is great sport in the country when there is snow enough for it Immediately after a breakfast the entire parly sets out for a walk. When they turn toward home, the host or someone selected as guide iniorms them that supplies are hidden along the way m various caches and they will do well io look out for them. Each cache is merely a mound of snow covering lightly a quantity of gift packages. securely wrapped. There need be only three or four mounds and die gifts should be divided promiscu ously among them. If the walk has been long, the first cache to be found—that is. the one farthest from home—may hide a box of cookies, which will be hailed joyfully and will make the gifts in the next cache an even greater surprise. The last cache to be reached may be the centerpiece on the dining table. Here il should be of cotton glittering with diamond dust, with the pole rising from !hc middle o f it. a fat. squatty pole with a jolly Santa Claus atop. Small gifts may be concealed in a Jack Horner pic. brought to the table when dinner is finished. Choose a deep, round pan of a size to fit the number of the party and put into it the presents, each daintily wrapped and marked with the name of ihe one to receive it. To it far-away relative may he sent the kiddies' latest photo (It may he only a snapshot if it be well taken) accompanied by a little verse after this sort: We’iv very small, bat wc want to send To our Auntie far away. Some love tout a kiss, with a happy wish For o Merry Christoias Day. Reprinted from the December 8, 1921 issue of the Big Timber Pioneer. THANKS! For Reading The Pioneer! ^ u U e / i f t y C h / i i s t m a s ! r* ^ \ _ from all of us a t Big Timber G lass and Detailing *604 West 2nd • Big Timber, MT • 932-6860 Your Hometown Auto Glass Specialist i : 0 L E D R U G G a n _ Wishes you a lilflerry Ghristwas Cflfj Sr Happy YlewTear! )uit in time for Cfcfiftm*# Ruffcll Stover# Si* 5 *r Free & tow C*rb. We will CLOSEat 2pm on Wed. Dec. 24 Prospector Pizza m M m m m w s m t r * s / k f t v • WE \MLL CLOSE AT2P.MJ , DEC-BOXANO BE CLOGED D S C 2STH THROUGH OEC. 28TH. W E W L L REOPEN O N MONQAf, DECEMBER 2 9 A T7A.M.UNTnL8P.M. 1121 $ 3 c£eoH S i. Sig Timber, COT 993 - 48461