[Editorial note: Jerri is away for Christmas on a holiday excursion, and Kitty (our “town crier”) writes letters to her about what’s going on in Islandshire while she’s gone. Kitty graciously allowed us to publish her letter to Jerri which told all about Harold’s annual Christmas Tree Sale.]
Christmas 2022
Dear Jerri,
I hope this finds you well and enjoying your Bowling League holiday excursion to the mountains. Is it cold there? It’s cold here. Nice cold, though; not like the year of the Christmas Bazaar, when we had all that wind and rain with the cold.
This time, we got blue skies and just enough cold to let us show off our new outerwear. Everyone’s saying how glad they are that Bunty opened her Sheep Shop and started selling knitted sweaters before they needed them. Anyway, I hope you’re having nice weather, wherever you are!
You asked me to let you know how Harold’s Christmas Tree sale went. Oh, Jerri, it was just purrfect! He’d set up his “tree lot” in the same place as last year, but it was larger and nicer this year. Honestly, Jerri, it was like a Christmas Wonderland! Seemed like the trees were bigger this year, but he had lots of different shapes and sizes. And he was offering to deliver the trees (Merry Men Club to the rescue) that evening, which he’d never done before. (He’d been training Alton all year to work with David’s sled dog and sled.) Even people who didn’t have room for a tree came just for the fun and cheer of it all (and to show off their sweaters, I think). You know Harold: “Merry Everything”! And he’d thought of everything! Lots of the decorations and ornaments had never been seen on Islandshire, so the shelves were empty when the lot closed. Even the Bird Houses flew like hotcakes!
These smaller trees and potted poinsettias didn’t last long at all, but you’ve got to see what Harold did this year. He sold bags of SNOW! Of course, being a tropical island, it wasn’t real snow. (Actually, Jerri, it was amazing how few of us had ever seen real snow when we started asking around. Mostly only the out-of-town redheads.) But Harold’s bags of snow were the hit of the day! As for the Reindeer Feed. What a hoot! It was really just Harold’s idea of decorating, using some of his own bags of sheep food in a painted burlap sack. But you won’t believe it — people bought both of them! Natalya bought one to give to Bunty for her sheep, and then asked Eliot if he thought it was okay for them to eat Reindeer Feed. (Eliot just said, “Ask Harold.”) Later, Hibiscus caught Harold off guard when she asked how much the bag cost. “It’s so adorable! It’s just what I need to decorate my shop with”. Harold didn’t have the heart to tell her it was just plain sheep feed. He said he really couldn’t charge her for it, since she didn’t own a reindeer. “Once you’re done with it, Hibby, just give it to Bunty. She’ll know what to do with it.” [Girls . . .]
Eliot was there as Santa. You should have seen the crazy new reindeer hat that Bunty made for his outfit. And Harold had asked Omera and Fletcher to be Santa’s “elves” this year, helping people find what they needed and passing out live poinsettia flowers.
Since the weather had turned chilly, Harold had Hot Chocolate & Candy Canes in the little sales area. Bet you can’t guess who thought that was the best part of the day! Yep! Janie, of course. She spent the day making and serving Hot Chocolate to the shoppers. And since she was so good at it, Harold told her to help herself to all the cocoa she could drink. I wonder who got the better end of that deal!
Bet you’re wondering where I got all these photos. Well, Trudy took them, and she made a set for me to send to you. Everyone asked if I’d heard from you, so I had to share all your letters around. Mariamne and Toni said they thought you had a real knack for observing things and then making them interesting on paper. (Maybe you should offer to give a talk at the Community Center when you get back.) Trudy asked if I would make a copy of this letter to share with the readers of The Gazette, so don’t be surprised if you find yourself “famous” when you get back.
Harold insisted that there had to be lots of poinsettias everywhere, so Omera volunteered to be his “poinsettia elf” and walk around with a basket full of cut flowers for everyone in the lot. (Part of his Merry Everything spirit, you know.) Anyway, you should have seen her outfit! It was all red velvet and white fur. And look at how she decorated her ear muffs and hair with those big poinsettias! It was breathtakingly beautiful, but I felt bad for her bare little arms. She said she didn’t mind, because she wanted to make people happy. And Janie kept her in Hot Chocolate all day long.
I have to tell you something funny that happened to Brighton. Oh, dear! I don’t think I’ve told you yet that the “the Redhead Club” girls came to the sale. Sorry. It was supposed to be a surprise for everyone, so they all arrived the day before and were “hiding out” with Bunty until Eliot could arrange to get them out to the sale. (He told everyone that his reindeer and sleigh had been commandeered by Harold to deliver trees later that day.) Well, the secrecy worked, because I never heard even a hint of a rumour about the girls being on the island. Oh, Jerri! It really made the day a lot more special, and it’s a miracle they got any shopping done. Since Wool Week had been cancelled this year (Bunty’s shop renovation, you know), no one had seen them for more than a year. They were only in for the day, but I think they went home with the usual overstuffed baggage! No, since I can hear you asking from here, Brighton did not take the potted plant home with her. She bought it as a gift for Bunty’s Sheep Shop window!
Oh, Jerri, you should have seen Mabel and Mazie! You’ll never guess what they wore, and the answer isn’t “sweaters”. They actually wore the dresses their mothers had worn for Christmas in the 1990s! And they’d been made by their grandmothers! How cool is that?! Everyone thought that the girls had actually made them, but I made sure that everyone knew the real story. And Mabel was telling me that she has all of her family’s old Christmas ornaments, so they were looking for a BIG tree. Those girls are so sweet. It’s like twins that aren’t really twins. You’ll have to ask them to see the dresses when you get home.
You’ll be glad to know that both Lilibet and George were able to make it over after all. Eliot offered to transport all the sisters of the Merry Men Club boys (who would be doing late-night tree deliveries) to and from the sale at any time. Pete and George offered to “shuttle” on Eliot’s scooter during the day, but no one would ride with George. (Do you remember how he was on the scooter during the last Wool Week? El Speedo Crazy Boy!) Pete had it all in hand, though, and George helped people load their trees who didn’t need them to be delivered. I’m including a photo of Lilibet so that you can see the most divine winter outfit on Islandshire! That girl makes everything look good (or better, as in this case).
You might think I’m running out of things to say, but I’ve saved the best story for last. The funniest thing happened . . . well, it was funny to the rest of us. It’s about Bethany and Livie. I’ll do my best, but you really had to be there. Say, why don’t I just write captions on the photos and let them tell the story?
(Left to right: Silver, Livie, Jill and Bethany)
Silver: “Hey, Bethany! Look what I found! It’s JUST what you girls need for your room! Isn’t it just the perfect size and shape to fit on your printer table?!”
Bethany: “Oh, my word! It’s just what I was hoping to find. Livie, look at what Silver found. Isn’t it just perfect? Livie? Li-i-i-v! Oh, well, I’ll show her later. I just know she’ll love it. Let’s look around a bit. Looks like she’s telling Jill the story about the big dog she saw the other day.”
Liv wasn’t telling the big-dog story at all. She was busy explaining to Jill that she wanted a BIG tree! The biggest one Harold could find!
Livie: “You know what I mean! At least this big around!”
Jill: “But, Liv. You don’t have that much space in your room. I mean, even if you did (which you don’t), you don’t have enough ornaments to fill it.”
Livie: “Don’t worry about it. We can make the ornaments and . . . I know . . . where’s Bethany? We’ll rent a storage unit and put the printer table and nightstand away for a month or so. Hey, Bethany . . .”
Bethany: “Hey, guys! Look at the tree Silver found! Isn’t it just what we need, Liv? It’ll fit perfectly on the printer table next to your bed.”
Livie: ??????????????????
Jill: “Uh-oh.”
Silver: What do you think about one of these small floor trees sitting here for our place, Jill? Okay, you pick one out, and we’ll all go and pay. Then we can walk around and soak up all the “merry” that Harold’s brought to Islandshire. And I hear that Janie’s selling Hot Chocolate for Harold. I don’t know about you guys, but I could use a hot drink.”
Jill: “How about this one? Good? Let’s go, Hey, Liv! You comin’?”
Liv: “What? No, not yet. I’m just going to walk around and enjoy the pine smell. Catch up with ya later . . . Hey, Fletch! Got a minute?”
Harold: “Hi, Girls! Glad you could make it. Find everything you need?”
Bethany: “Oh, my word, yes! This little tree is just what we were looking for. We’d like to pay for these, now, please. Then we can enjoy your Tree Sale without having to lug these trees around.”
Silver: “Actually, Harold, it’s that she needs both hands to hold the Hot Cocoa cup.” [All Girls Giggle]
Bethany: “Is that baby tree for sale, too? I think my sister will love having TWO trees in our room, and that’s the perfect size for her nightstand. Oh, good. I’ll take both, please.”
Harold:“Do you want to pay for your sister’s big tree and delivery right now, or do you want to take care of that later?”
Bethany: “What big tree? Oh, no. She’s just talking to Fletcher and ‘soaking up the pine-scented atmosphere’. As nice as they are, we don’t have room for anything that big. Are you sure?”
Harold: “I’m sure. I arranged for hand signals with the Merry Men to let me know when to charge for a big tree and/or delivery. Fletch just gave me the sign for both. Why don’t you talk to your sister, and I’ll hide the surprise ‘baby tree’ back here for you? Are you ready, Girls? That’s a nice one.”
Bethany: “But, Harold. There MUST be a mistake. We don’t HAVE that kind of space in our room.”
Harold: “Wait one second, please. Okay. Fletch just signed to cancel that order. Sorry for the confusion. Now, do you need help getting these home? Just kidding. Let me pack the surprise in two bags, just in case your sister is a peeker. Thanks for coming, and enjoy your day! Now, let’s see if . . . no, you girls look like you’re doing just fine with that. Sure it’s not too heavy for you? If you change your mind, just let one of the boys know. And tell Janie the Hot Chocolate’s on me! Bethany looks cold. Merry everything!”
Livie: “Whew! That was close! Now, remember, Fletcher, this is a SURPRISE for my sister! Let’s wait until she and the Girls are talking to Janie, then we’ll move this one out back so no one else can buy it. Can I just pay you here for the tree and the delivery? I don’t want Bethany to see me paying. Okay, thanks . . . Hey, this is heavier than I thought. Can you get a buddy to help you hide this out back? Thanks, Fletch! You’re a real pal!
Livie: “Don’t forget . . . nonchalant. If she asks, we were just chatting about . . . um . . . I know! A big dog. Yep, a big dog. Just tell her it was the big-dog story. She won’t ask any more questions after that. I don’t know. Maybe she doesn’t like big dogs. No matter how many times I tell the story (and I’ve told it a lot), she never sticks around to hear the end. Great! Until later. Tell the boys ‘thanks’ for making this my sister’s best Christmas ever.”
Well, Jerri, whaddya think about that? Bet you almost wish you were here. True to Liv’s word, she rented a storage unit to make room for the tree in their room. I’m not sure how many ornaments they had time to get done, but I did hear that the pine smell in the room was . . . therapeutic. Anyway, did I tell you that Harold was sold out before the sun began to set? The Merry Men Club was making deliveries for hours, but Bunty and her friends prepared a Cornish dinner for them to enjoy when they were finished. Funny thing about that. I heard that all the recipes came from that new cookbook she got, and I’m not sure about turnips with cheese. Are you an adventurous eater? I’m not.
I guess all that’s left is to show you photos that Trudy took when the delivery crew was at work. And we all know that “a picture is worth a thousand words”. Boy, that Trudy sure is a good photographer. I wonder if she’d give a talk on it at the Community Center.
Well, dear friend, I think that about covers it. I hope this didn’t make you homesick. While I do miss you, I know how wonderful your trip must seem to you. Besides, you write the most delightful letters. And if you didn’t leave home every now and then, we’d never know that, would we? Don’t worry about Pete, either, because everyone is taking very good care of your brother. He sends his love, as do we all. Stay warm, and have a very Merry Christmas, Jerri!
Praying for your safe return,
Kitty
P.S. Should I keep sending the letters to the same address, or are you moving along in the near future?
Lovely! Such detail to make everything perfect and great to see.
Awesome, we are glad that Natalya was there to share in the winter fun. This was a great time for everyone with all the things to see and do there. Great photography from Trudy glad she caught the whole thing. Hope to see more soon from the Island.
Hugs,
Ninsi