The Sights of Light-Up Night: a Never Before Published Article

                                    The Sights of Light-Up Night    

The Friday after Thanksgiving was bitterly cold. The icy wind blew through the early winter night air, biting the cheeks and fingers of anyone who dared to go out in it. The black dome of the sky was covered with clouds, not a star shone up above.

     You might wonder why anyone would want to be outside in these conditions, but there actually were tens, maybe hundreds of people out around town on this very night in Beaver Pennsylvania. No, the residents of our small town are not crazy. It’s not a habit of ours to be out in freezing 20 degree weather in the dark. On the contrary, most of the time, most people would much prefer to be shut inside their nice, warm houses. But, besides being Black Friday, this November 26^th marked a very special once in a lifetime (actually once in a year) occasion. It was Beaver’s annual Light-Up Night, and I observed it firsthand.

      At about twenty after six, armed with gloves, hats, and scarves, we walked up to Third Street just in time to catch a glimpse of the parade, which was very interesting, to say the least. The floats, band, cars and carriages would process down the street and then turn around and make a loop so that, at times, the parade was going in two different directions! It was very entertaining. After the parade had ended, we started to look around.

      True to its name, Light-Up Night was quite full of lights. All of Main Street was aglow. The Christmas lights that were strung on the trees in October were finally lit. The windows of the storefronts were all dressed up with holiday decorations beckoning you inside and luminaries lined the sidewalk.

      Clusters of people filtered in and out of the open stores, viewing the merchandise, watching the live models in the Shirley Shop, listening to the orchestra students from Beaver as they moved from store to store, and some, even eating at one of the restaurants.

The Borough offered free hot chocolate and donuts, while down at the historical museum’s log cabin, costumed volunteers served homemade cookies and hot apple cider cooked over a warm fire.

     After we had seen all the sights of Light-Up Night, we walked back home to our warm house and went to bed. What a wonderful job Beaver did, yet again, putting on such a festive event.

This post is from November, 2010

Put Away the Shorts and Bring Out the Shovels!

Just one week ago, as the red mercury in the thermometers shot up past the 50 and 60 degree marks, spring fever was spreading throughout the town. The brown, dry grass looked as if it were taking a long, deep breath, rejoicing in it's freedom from the suffocating layer of heavy snow, which, except for a few piles of slushy mush, was completely gone. The birds sounded as if they were bursting with joy as they sang up in the trees. People all around Beaver were outside enjoying the weather but most were seen on River Road riding bikes, walking their dogs, jogging, or just taking a brisk stroll. Everyone had been infected, and there was no cure for this disease.

For those couple of days, I was wearing shorts. Less than a week later, I was wearing hat, gloves, and snow pants.

 Just when we had all truly believed that spring was coming like the groundhog had said, winter came flying back like a slap in the face. It was Monday, and the weather forcasters were only predicting some freezing rain and sleet for that evening. That was a mistake. By mid-afternoon fluffy white snow was falling...... and sticking. The shovels were brought back out from the garage and my dad sent my brother and I out to clear the front walk at about 6:30pm, when at least 3 inches already covered the ground . The faster I shoveled, the faster the snow fell and by the time I was done, a fresh dusting of snow had already accumulated on the sidewalk.

The next morning, the world was completely white. Overnight, a total of seven inches had been dumped on the same town which had been basking in the warmth of spring only days earlier.

At first, I was disappointed. Winter will never end! I thought. But soon I was enjoying the snow as I always do. I went outside with the other neighborhood kids and we worked for hours building an igloo and later, a snow man.

The temperature is creeping back up into the 40's and it looks like we're headed for another loooong, slow, thaw. For now, we're stuck with winter again. But while its here I'll try to enjoy it, for the real spring will be back before long.



Have you always wanted to build an igloo? You should! It sounds like it would be hard, but actually, if you have enough people to help, it isn't. Here's how:


1. Take some shovels and mound up a huge pile of snow


2. As you're piling, use a squirt bottle to spray water onto the loose bits of snow make it frozen so that it stays packed into place


3. After your pile is big (it has to be BIG if you want people to fit inside) trace out a doorway and start chipping and digging out a hole that will be the room. Remember to spray the roof and walls as you're digging so that the whole thing does not cave in on top of you!


4. Contiue to thicken the outside igloo walls as needed so that when carving your room, your shovel does not break through and puncture the whole thing


5. Carve the room to your desired size while scraping out all excess snow


6. Put on finishing touches and have fun!

Happiness Is.........

A couple years ago, my mom got out the sound track to the musical "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown" from the library. At first, it was like, "eh, just another CD mom thought was interesting and thinks we should listen to" (I wasn't too keen on the pictures in the booklet showing real humans taking the place of the Peanuts cartoon characters, which was all I was used to. They kinda freaked me out). But once I had heard it a  few times, I was hooked. It became sort of a family staple. My brother and I memorized all the words. Even the older siblings joined in. "Shroeder" and "My New Philosophy" were belted throughout the house while "Suppertime" was used as our dinner bell. But perhaps the most favorite song was the one that came very last on the CD, titled "Happiness".

Speaking of "Happiness", here are the lyrics:

HAPPINESS IS FINDING A PENCIL.
PIZZA WITH SAUSAGE
TELLING THE TIME.
HAPPINESS IS LEARNING TO WHISTLE.
TYING YOUR SHOE FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.

HAPPINESS IS PLAYING THE DRUM IN YOUR OWN SCHOOL BAND.
AND HAPPINESS IS WALKING HAND IN HAND.
HAPPINESS IS TWO KINDS OF ICE CREAM.
KNOWING A SECRET.
CLIMBING A TREE.
HAPPINESS IS FIVE DIFFERENT CRAYONS.
CATCHING A FIREFLY.
SETTING HIM FREE.

HAPPINESS IS BEING ALONE EVERY NOW AND THEN.
AND HAPPINESS IS COMING HOME AGAIN.
HAPPINESS IS MORNING AND EVENING,
DAY TIME AND NIGHT TIME TOO.
FOR HAPPINESS IS ANYONE AND ANYTHING AT ALL
THAT'S LOVED BY YOU.

HAPPINESS IS HAVING A SISTER.
SHARING A SANDWICH.
GETTING ALONG.
HAPPINESS IS SINGING TOGETHER WHEN DAY IS THROUGH,
AND HAPPINESS IS THOSE WHO SING WITH YOU.
HAPPINESS IS MORNING AND EVENING,
DAYTIME AND NIGHTTIME TOO.
FOR HAPPINESS IS ANYONE AND ANYTHING AT ALL
THAT'S LOVED BY YOU.



Inspired by this song, I present to you four things that made me happy this week:

Happiness is..........

1. Not Breaking My Thumb
Thumb. Door. Slam. Not very good words to be used together. You can probably guess what happened. These words added together equal blood, swelling and pain, which is also not a very good combination of words. I thought for sure my thumb was broken. But I iced it, soaked it, and bandaged it under the watchful eye of  Dr. Mom and by the next morning the swelling had gone down. I sit here with nothing but an ugly blood blister and a fully bendable thumb that's not that sore. (No stitches needed) Thanks be to God!






2. Having a Snow Day
I LOVE snow! No matter what people say about hating winter, as long as there is a significant amount of snow, I have to disagree. Snow is such a miracle! And what I like even more than snow is having a snow day. A day devoted solely to snow. And we had just that kind of a day on Wednesday, when six inches of snow fell, and school was cancelled.
I love playing all day in the white stuff, sledding, snowball fighting, frolicking with the neighbors, and just laying in the snow. I enjoy genuinely getting tired out and then, red cheeked and cold, going inside to thaw out with a warm cup of any kind of non-chocolate liquid. My mom likes to make me vanilla milk. Yummy!





3. Watching the Steelers Win
What a great way to end the week! On to the AFC championship! Victory alone makes me feel good, but beating the Ravens is even better.






4. Visiting My Grandma
On Friday, my mom and I went to Cleveland to visit my Grandma. Its nice to live close enough to go see her for a few hours and still be able to drive back to Beaver all in one day. I had a good time. No wonder why they're called Grandmas. My grandma sure is grand!




(5.) Sending out the Missy Times
I just had to mention that.


"Happiness is anyone and anything at all thats loved by you.........."

What made you happy this week?

'Twas The Week Before Christmas.... In The Words of Christmas Carols

"From now on we all will be together,
if the Fates allow"   

"Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more."

"In the air there's a feeling of Christmas"

"Can you hear what I hear?"
"Silver bells, silver bells"

"Please have snow, and mistletoe, and presents by the tree"

"Let every heart, prepare Him room"

"From now on our troubles will be miles away"
  so
"Joy to the world!"

Christmas is coming.


-"Have yourself a merry little Christmas"
-"Silver Bells"
-"I'll be home for Christmas"
-"Joy to the world"




And have yourself A merry little Christmas now.

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree!

Yesterday, on a rainy winter afternoon, just as we were on the brink of another Steelers win, my mom and I went to the church parking lot to pick out and purchase this year's Christmas tree.
We had three varieties to choose from:

Douglas Fir
Frasier Fir
Chaanan Fir

At first, my mom wanted to get one of the douglas firs which were nice trees, but as soon as I saw that the volunteer who was showing us the tree was almost as tall as it, I immeadiately told my mom that this was not the tree for us. For, the image of a tree from Christmas past had popped into my head. It had been a nice little tree, round and full, but the problem was, it was short. Even standing on a box it's top still was two feet short from the ceiling. We did get a kick out of it, but that wasn't the tree we said, "This is the best tree we've ever had!" about.That statement may be true for last year's tree, though.  Look how beautiful it was! (see top picture)

I wanted to lean towards picking a tree like last year's rather than a short tree like the one from two years ago, so, we moved on.

The Frasiers looked dried out, so our last choice were the Chaanans. And, we ended up taking home a wonderful looking tree with a very nice Christmas shape standing nearly 7 1/2 feet tall . Considering our ceilings are only 8 feet, I'd say its the perfect height. We won't put it up for a few days. Right now, its sitting on the porch outside in the world covered with freshly fallen snow.

What's your opinion on Christmas trees? What does yours look like?

Christmas is still 12 twelve days away! Can we really wait?

In the words of Father Mike in his sermon yesterday, "Be patient, be patient, be patient"

Happy Advent!!!!!

                                                                                                                                                      
Yesterday, November 28th, marked the beginning of Advent, the holy season in which we prepare for Christmas and the second coming of Jesus.

Speaking of Christmas, it feels like the holiday comes earlier and earlier each year. Just four days after Thanksgiving, it seems as if almost every house in town already has Christmas lights and wreaths hanging outside, and in some houses you can already see Christmas trees through the curtains. At the mall, Christmas sales, decorations, and presents abound, while carols stream out the speakers.

Please reread the date at the top of this post and take a deep breath. Its November 29th. Christmas is still 25 days away.Though its past October I still feel we're overdoing it.

Don't get me wrong. I absolutely LOVE Christmas. It is the one holiday that outshines my love for Thanksgiving, mostly because it is the 2nd most important holiday we celebrate (Easter being the first). The reason why its so important is because it is the day God sent His only Son Jesus to save us. I also love Christmas for all the other obvious reasons, the songs, the decorations, the gifts, the cheer etc.

But, it is November and it is Advent, our time to prepare for the day. Maybe putting up all the Christmas stuff and singing carols already is some people's way of preparing, but for other people, I'm just worried that by the time Christmas does come, they'll already be taking them down (which usually does happen) and forget why they put them up in the first place. And the stores? The ones that started their sales on Thanksgiving Day? I know they aren't preparing for the Christmas season, they want it to start now, they don't care about what it truly means, they just want customers.

I admit, its hard for me not to join in, and we should start to get in the mood because the 25th is going to be here soon, so I think listening to a carol here and there and watching a Christmas special or two won't hurt, just as long as we don't overdo it. I think to truly enjoy Christmas, we should prepare, (our hearts then our house) and when we are prepared, let the joy begin!

So grab an Advent Calendar, prepare, be patient with those Christmas ads, light those purple and pink Advent candles, and have a happy four weeks of  Advent!

Don't forget to sing "Oh Come Oh Come Emmanuel"!

Snow, Part 2

                           

This morning, just two days after Thanksgiving, I woke up and climbed down the ladder of my bunk bed. I walked over to the window in the dark room and peeked through the blinds and was very, very pleasantly astonished. Fluffy white clumps that looked like tiny little clouds were slowly drifting to the ground. I felt a wave of excitement rush over me, for, though I saw it on the ground in Cleveland at the beginning of the month,  I didn't actually see the snow fall then.
This time it was the real deal! The first Beaver snowfall of winter!
It was so beautiful. I've been noticing something for a while now, and when I went outside today I noticed it yet again. Some way, I don't know how, when you stand outside in the snow, the world seems so much quieter, even more peaceful, and the silence sounds louder as long as the flakes are falling. Maybe that's why a winter wonderland seems so magical and mysterious. What do you think?
The snow didn't stick, but it was really cool to see it. Winter is beginning!

Snow!!!

My Grandma had knee surgery this past week and my mom and I are here in Cleveland to help her out.

          Yesterday, when we left Beaver it was a little overcast and chilly but except for the layer of  unraked leaves skirting the ground, the grass was totally bare. So naturally I was quite suprised when, as we neared my Grandma's exit, the rooftops we passed were dusted with some strange white dust and the ground along the highway was covered in some weird foreign substance that I haven't seen in over six seven months. Yes, believe it or not it was snow!

     When we arrived at the house I got out of the car and reached down to scoop up a handful of the icy flakes which were caked onto the grass. It was the first time I'd touched snow in what felt like years! I'm not quite used to winter yet!

         Today is supposed to be in the 50's though, and the small amount of snow has melted. Now, as I look out the window in the nursing home computer lab, past all the old men watching the Brown's game (most are sleeping), I can see the sun shining bright and clear. Winter isn't here yet, but it sure is on it's way!