STORYTIME TAPESTRY

The Newsletter devoted to spreading love and cultural awareness throughout the world

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Dec 28, 2005? 

Today??™s Announcements:

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? Again we welcome another new writer to the Storytime Tapestry fold.?  Laura Jo Lindsey is writer #279.?  Please email her and let her know just how much you enjoyed her story.

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Now on to the good stuff..........

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Today's Christmas Stories
~**~**~**~

? ValueSpeak? 

A Weekly Column

By Joseph Walker

valuespeak@msn.com

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REDEEMING THE CHRISTMAS VILLAIN

He's the great villain of Christmas. Check any Christmas pageant -- you'll see.

He's the one played by the big, intimidating-looking kid. I know this because that big, intimidating-looking kid used to always be me. And I played this guy so often I had the part down cold.

Which is exactly what the part calls for: coldness. Aloofness. Indifference. Apathy.

You stand there with your arms crossed, looking ornery (and who wouldn't be ornery? You're standing there wearing your dad's bathrobe and a towel on your head). It's like you're just waiting to bark at someone (especially if anyone makes a crack about the towel). Sure enough, along comes the handsome boy (why couldn't I ever be the handsome boy?) and the cute girl with long dark hair (WHY COULDN'T I EVER BE THE HANDSOME BOY???) with the pillow stuffed under her robe to make her look . . . you know . . . "great with child."

You are the Innkeeper, and they are coming to you for lodging. Your job in the pageant is to turn them away rudely, and to send them out into the stable to have their child. This I used to do with great flair, fixing the young couple with a steely glare, waving my arms wildly ("Oy vey! It's the middle of the tourist season, and you think you can just walk in here and get a room? What do you think this is, Inn 6?") and then pointing them toward the stable while the children's chorus behind us sang "Away in a Manger."

And then I would disappear. End of story. At least, it??™s the end of the Innkeeper??™s story.

Or is it?

Perhaps I grew too fond of the old boy by playing him for so many years, but I like to think of the Innkeeper wandering into the stable that first Christmas night. I see him hiding in the shadows, watching in wonder and awe as angels herald the birth of a king. I think of him joining the shepherds at the side of the manger, falling to his knees to worship and adore. And I imagine him leaving his stable Christmas morning a changed man ??“ still big and intimidating-looking, but somehow kinder, gentler and more compassionate.

And why not? One of things I've learned through 50 or so Christmases is that the spirit of Christmas is a redemptive spirit. And not just in a theological sense. Look at our favorite Christmas stories:

??“ an English miser is redeemed when ghostly visitors show him scenes from Christmases past, present and future (or at least the future that will surely come if he doesn't change his ways);

??“ a bankrupt building and loan owner is redeemed when an angel (second class) shows him how much different life would have been for the people he loves most if he hadn't been born;

??“ a green Grinch is redeemed (and his heart grows three sizes) when Whos refuse to lose the Christmas spirit despite the disappearance of all of their gifts (including the roast beast);

??“ a red-nosed reindeer is redeemed when inclement weather forces a toy cartel to seek an alternate lighting source for its annual overnight distribution run.

Clearly, the anecdotal evidence suggests that Christmas is about redemption through change: changing ideas, changing perceptions, changing relationships, changing values. But mostly, it??™s about changing self. And if that can apply to English misers, building and loan owners, green Grinches and red-nosed reindeer, then surely it can apply to big, intimidating-looking Innkeepers.

And the people who play them.

Merry Christmas!

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? I would like to share my Christmas memory and submit it in the contest. Please feel free to edit if I have missed errors. Merry Christmas and blessings to all of you who have blessed me with your stories and with those of you who take the time to publish this blessing of a newsletter.

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Laura Jo Lindsey

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Memories of Candy Canes, Stockings and??¦Bats? 

Laura Jo Lindsey

So often our memories of Christmas are of twinkling lights, yummy foods and brightly wrapped presents underneath the tree. However, when I think Christmas and the precious memories shared with those I love both here and that have passed on I sometimes also think of bats.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  That??™s right, I said bats! Let me tell you why. Christmas week nearing a decade ago I was? accompanying the youth choir on the piano at my home church for their Christmas musical. I had labored many hours in practice aiming for perfection on a very difficult piece written by Bach that been modified and set to lyrics. The beautiful piece of music had an introduction that was sixteen measures long which is quiet a long introduction.? 

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  As the performance began the introduction was going along quiet well with my playing being in perfect time and no notes being missed when I saw out of the corner of my eye a shadow that appeared to soar somewhere above the top of the highly polished grand piano on which I played.?  I was following the choir director??™s hand and did not concern myself with the shadow until...I could see the youth swaying and moving erratically on the platforms. Since the choir director's hand continued to direct the music I continued to play feeling assured that nothing was amiss.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  ? The song continued on for about a minute when the choir director's hand suddenly and abruptly closed signaling the music to end. I looked up??¦ and what to my wondering eyes did appear? The entire youth choir jumping and diving off of the platform chased away from the front of a church by a bat! Needless to say the entire congregation roared with merry laughter while the bat that had escaped from the church belfry was unceremoniously chased from the church by the ushers and men-folk. Soon the congregation? settled down and refocused on the choir.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  The youth, having composed themselves??¦for the most part anyway??¦ settled on down as well and the song began once more.?  My grandmother who was a very graceful eighty-eight years had attended the youth choir??™s Christmas performance because she was my greatest and most devoted? fan in whatever pursuit I was found but especially in my small and uneventful aspiration as a pianist. She sat and listened to me so patiently encouraging me through the many practice sessions that were often discordant as I learned each piece. Year after year she faithfully attended each and every recital always making me feel like a virtuoso no matter how I played and I wondered as I played the second time through the difficult introduction what she must be thinking of the excitement caused by the bat.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Their faces full of color from the excitement and a quirky smile present on every young face the choir sang once more, but this time, they sang? with energy unknown to the group of teens while performing in church and the pianist did a pretty swell job as well. After a few more songs the performance came to an end and everyone headed to the basement of the church for refreshments. I walked down the aisle and approached the pew where my grandmother was sitting. I started to ask what she thought about the bat??™s intrusion as she stood gracefully up smiling like a Cheshire cat. With her eyes twinkling brighter than lights on any tree I??™ve ever seen she said, "You played beautifully Laura...even with a bat flying around your head.??? Then with her sweet southern voice thoughtfully added: ???Why??¦you never missed a note!???

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  That was my Grandmother's last Christmas with us, and even my Mother is gone now as well. So if you come to my house and see a bat hanging on my tree you will know I??™m not crazy or touched in the head but that it??™s my own special Christmas memory.

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Laura Jo Lindsey

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This story is written in honor and memory of my dearly departed grandmother, Irene Gurley Sims and her daughter who was is also my cherished and terribly missed Mother, Nancy Jo Sims Lindsey.

Laurajolin888@aol.com

About me:

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Laura Jo Lindsey worked for 18 years as a paralegal working for judges, attorneys and finally at legal aid in North Alabama. She knew she wanted to write at 8 years of age and finally began in earnest 2 years ago at 40 years of age. Her children Carrie, a schoolteacher, and Dennis, on a wrestling scholarship at Cumberland College in Tennessee are her inspiration. Laura grew up in Hartselle, Alabama and has recently begun residing in Town Creek, Alabama where she pursues her career as a writer.

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My Own Chewy the Elf ? 

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By Jan Verhoeff

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? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  ???I like eggs.??? Chewy popped up again, from his station at the wooden toy table. His eyes big and round with excitement, as the big day got closer.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  ???Ah Chewy, you say the weirdest stuff.??? Monica admonished, putting the finishing touches on a red wagon and slipping it into a box wrapped with green paper and a big red bow. ???Why don??™t you go outside and play in the snow???? She wiggled her pointed ears and grinned her prettiest smile at the little elf who often upset their table.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  ???I like eggs.??? Chewy answered again.?  His pointy ears wiggled and his red and green stocking cap slipped off to display a head full of long curls falling down across his red plaid flannel shirt and green button up overalls.?  All the elves wore similar quilted overalls to keep them warm in the frozen north.?  Their slippers of thick fluffy wool were tipped with jingling bells and the hurried steps and gentle jingling accented the usual Christmas tunes coming from the speakers overhead. Christmas town was busy this time of year.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Elves all around him packed their toys into boxes wrapped in pretty paper, tied up with ribbons, and Chewy continued to play around under the tables, popping up and announcing his favorite things at various work stations. ???And here you get your four basic food groups.??? He popped up at the candy cane and Christmas Cookie table. ???Candy canes, Christmas cookies, Sugar sprinkles, and gumdrops. What more could a good elf want???? He snitched a white frosted snowman, decorated with licorice, gumdrops, and raisins and disappeared again into the maize of tables and working elves.? ? 

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  ???Chewy, you??™d better get back to work! It??™s almost Christmas.??? An old elf tripped over him crawling out from under another table as he placed a newly fashioned truck in another pretty papered box and tied the bow on top.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  ???Chewy!??? Demetrius stumbled, knocking over a whole row of toy soldiers as Chewy stood up from under the last table. Elves stood them upright quick as a wink and Chewy crawled back under another table. He stayed out from under foot until he arrived at the table where the older elves stitched blankets for dolls and tucked them into cradles.?  He found an empty cradle and snuggled under a small blue blanket with a soft pillow and drifted off to sleep.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  It was a lot of hard work being a little elf in Santa??™s workshop.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  The hustle and bustle went on around him and soon all the toys were wrapped in boxes with pretty paper, tied with big red bows, and tucked safely into Santa??™s bag and hauled out to the sleigh. The reindeer were all hitched up and ready to go, prancing happily about in the snow. Elves scampered through the snow, putting the finishing touches on the sleigh, adding bells to the collar of Dancer??™s harness, and tying a ribbon on Rudolph??™s neck.?  They checked all the lines and harnesses, making sure they all stayed tight. They checked the blinker fluid on the big red sleigh, they didn??™t want any mishaps on Christmas Night.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  In a whirl of snow, and the blink of an eye, Santa rushed out of the big red house and slid into place in the sleigh, with a ???Ho Ho Ho, and Merry Christmas to you all!??? he rode out of sight with Rudolph leading the way. Christmas fog was heavy, and the night bitter cold, but Santa was wrapped up warmly in his red suit edged in fur.?  As he hurried down each chimney to place gifts under the trees, and fill each stocking, the night wore on.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Back home in Christmas town, as every Christmas Eve, Mrs. Claus sat down in her rocker by the fire with all the little elves and read them a story. While the older elves finished cleaning up the workshop to get ready for another year of building toys and wrapping gifts, Mrs. Claus read about angels, shepherds, and a babe born in a manger.?  The story of the first Christmas as told through the years, how the gift of love was sent down from heaven. The little elves snuggled into their plaid quilted elf sleeping bags and drifted off to sleep around their own little Christmas tree with the fire glowing, and Mrs. Claus looking over them with a loving eye.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Amanda snuggled softly into her pillow with her gold curls flowing around her face. Blake curled up in a ball with his little brown bear. Jennifer rolled under the edge of the big Christmas tree on the red carpet, and Julliard spread out on the floor nearby.?  Winston and Misty shared a pillow on the couch. Contessa and Toad were hunched over a stuffed elephant on Santa??™s big red chair. Nobody noticed one little elf was missing.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Santa hurried down chimneys, placing toys in their spot, stuffing more stockings than he??™d ever seen. Every home had children and they all must have toys for Christmas morning. Each child got something special wrapped with a bow and in their stockings fruit and nuts, candy and cookies were hung gently above the warm fire glow.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Christmas morning came with squeals of delight, little elves twitching and itching to open their own Christmas stockings, and Mrs. Clause churning about preparing the feast in honor of the wonderful day. ???A day of miracles!??? Santa would proclaim as he arrived in time for dinner.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Stockings were opened and gifts unwrapped, and soon the hustle and bustle settled down to a roar.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Silence settled over a home further south, where no fire burned, no Christmas lights flickered and no stockings were hung. The home was quiet and still.?  Amelia sat alone in her chair curled up with a blanket and a faded old bear. She wanted to feel some Christmas joy, but there was none to feel on this Christmas day. Her eyes drifted shut as the night grew long, and she felt so alone.?  From somewhere in the distance she could hear a Christmas song. She snuggled into the blanket and didn??™t awaken until dawn. A smile lit her face as she heard someone singing, soft and low and far away; no, not far away. She looked down and saw it there, a box wrapped in green paper and tied with a red bow.

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Carefully, Amelia picked up the package and opened the wrapping, and untied the bow. Inside, wrapped up in a blue blanket, an elf was singing soft and low. ???Away in a manger, no crib for a bed??¦???

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  He looked up at her with big eyes, wiggled his ears and said, ???I like eggs.???

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Amelia giggled and joy filled up the room. She shrugged happily, hugging her elf and grinned contentedly in spite of herself. ???Thank you for being my Christmas gift. An elf, who??™d have thought it.??? She shrugged. ???It??™s better than a baboon!???

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? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  And the little elf answered, ???Just a little snow, some mistletoe, and one gift under the tree. Christmas time is here and it came with a little ole me!???? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 

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Jan Verhoeff

janverhoeff@yahoo.com

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? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?  Check out my Christmas book and other book options at:http://www.lulu.com/janverhoeff

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http://www.prepaidlegal.com/go/janverhoeff

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Visit my weblogs at http://writeurthoughts.blogspot.com and http://coffeeclatter.blogspot.com

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Make it a happy day - Blessings.

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~**~**~

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Poetry Section

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SHILOH??™S CHRISTMAS DREAM? 

By,

Shiloh Baker

Typist: Kathleene S. Baker

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T??™was the night before Christmas,

Here in Texas ??“ down south.

Company was just a??™sleepin??™,

All over my house.

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Our stockings were hung,

For old Santa to fill;

And Mom was so frazzled,

She took a nerve pill.

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Hank and I were snoring,

Cuddled up in the bed.

Just a??™waitin??™ for Santa,

In his hat of bright red.

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I was dreamin??™ ???bout toys,

For Hank and for me.

I knew I??™d been good;

And Hank??  Well, we??™d see!

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Then all of a sudden,

The burglar alarm blared.

Mom woke up with a jerk,

And she started to swear.

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I knew that scared Santa,

Even my nerves were shot.

My sock would be empty,

Oh no!?  What a thought!

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I cried and I cried,

Then a crash on the roof

Caused my Hank to start barkin??™,

While I went, ???Woof, Woof.???

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I raced down the hall,

Just a??™hopin??™ to see,

That old fat man in red,

Leavin??™ new toys for me.

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How scary it was!

I saw only his head

Upside down in our chimney!

Oh no!?  Was he dead?

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???Wake up now, sweet Shiloh,???

I heard Mommy say.

???Let??™s go check your stocking;

It??™s now Christmas day!???

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I guess I??™d been dreamin??™,

Cause Santa wasn??™t dead.

Ya??™ ???spose I??™ve got some of

Those plums in my head?

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Santa knew I??™d been good,

And about my bad year.

I got what blind doggies need --

Talking toys I can hear!

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Merry Christmas Everyone

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I don??™t know what happens when I try to write my story at Christmas.?  Last year when I was finished Mom told me it was a poem, and I didn??™t even know what a poem was!?  Now she says the very same thing happened this year.?  Go figure!?  I wanted to do my story/poem earlier this month but Mom claims she??™s been really dizzy (oops ??“ ???busy???).?  I do know one thing I??™m getting for Christmas.?  Get this ??“ my very own website!?  Yep, Mom says she??™s about finished building it.?  But I haven??™t heard any hammers or saws in the typing machine, so I hope this isn??™t another one of her lies.?  Hhhmmm??¦? 

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?©2005 Kathleene S. Baker

lnstrlady@aol.com

YELLOW ROSE

http://www.txyellowrose.com/

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New Bio:

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Kathy was born and raised in the small town of Augusta, Kansas that is only a few miles outside of Wichita.?  She married a native Texan in 1977 and was soon transplanted to Dallas.?  A large city offers many things, but she misses the slower pace of small town America.?  She has two stepchildren and four grandchildren.?  Pets have always played a huge part in her life.?  In fact, they were her inspiration to begin writing.?  She??™s had stories/poems featured on many websites, in numerous newsletters, as well as several publications.?  Recently she began writing a column for Frank Talk Magazine entitled, ???Heart of Texas.????  This publication can also be viewed online at: http://www.franktalkonline.com/? 

? Kathy??™s website can be viewed at:

YELLOW ROSE

http://www.txyellowrose.com/
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? ~**~**~

Flakes

Steve Johnston

A thousand liquid diamonds,
shaped by angels.

Cold, yet filled,
with the warmth of youth.

Miserable winter,
joy of Christmas.

Tighted eye of the aged,
gleeful laughter of youth.

Melting in my hand,
like a dream.

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? SENIOR WRITERS

Chief Writer: Sharon Bryant

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? Agee, Vance;? Apted, Violet;? Baker, Kathy; Batt, Al;?  Berry, Nell; Blaine, Pamela

Boda, Ginger;? ? Buhagiar, Victor; Cassady, B.J.;?  Cavalera, Robyn; Crider, Mark;? 

Deming, Barb; Doherty, Maria; Gilbert, Robert Jr; Goodier, Steve; Halley, Ellie Braun;

Harris, Kathy Anne;? Hunt, Sharlette;? Hymes, Christina

Jacobson, Gary;? Kiser, Roger Dean; Kerens, Claudia; Kevin, Tim Jenkins, Pamela;

Liles, Norma; Lilly, Jodi Flesberg; Lock, Joyce; Mazzella, Joe;? Morris, Deepak;

Ojeigbe, Georgewaters;

?  Petry, Dianna Doles; Roberts, Susan;?  Shiveley, Debra; Shaw, Bob; Sims, Richard; Streidel, Saskia; Swarner, Ken; Vaknin, Sam; Verhoeff, Jan

Walker, Bill; Walker, Joe;? Warner, Gorden K; Walsh, Sue

Weymouth, Barbara; Whirity, Kathy;? White, Robert;

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STORYTIME TAPESTRY STAFF

Publisher: Carol Roach-founder

Moderator: Thelma Hartselle-co founder

Moderator: Clara Westerfer

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Send all inquires about the newsletter including submission requirements:

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