December 8, 1965.
Jocie Brooke reporting from Main Street, Hollyhill, Kentucky. Well, I’m not actually standing on the street right this minute. I’m at home in my room, but a few minutes ago I was standing out there in the chilly air ready to cover the news.
We don’t usually do the parade at night, but Dad says the mayor is trying to shake things up a little. One thing for sure, the police car bubble lights look way more impressive in the dark. I took my camera to take pictures for the paper, and got some good ones while it was still daylight. You might see some of them in the Banner next week. But after dark, the flashbulbs weren’t quite enough to capture great images. Still I liked this one of a couple of kids seeing Santa riding on the firetruck to finish up the parade. They looked like they knew it was a long way down here to Hollyhill from the North Pole.
But I love parades. Well, most of the time. There was that one parade back last summer where some unwelcome guests crashed our 4th of July parade and brought Hollyhill some trouble. You can read about that in Orchard of Hope. But that was last year and this is now. Everything was peaceful for our Christmas parade. That’s the way it should be. I mean, didn’t the angels proclaim “peace, goodwill toward men!” when they told the shepherds about Jesus being born.
I love Christmas stories too. Too bad I didn’t have a Christmas scene in Bailey’s Bug. But it’s the middle of summer for them and Bailey, Lucinda and Skelley have to get across that great river of cars. Do you think they’ll be brave enough to try to make it? I guess it wouldn’t be much of a story if they aren’t or if they don’t make it. That would spoil everything, wouldn’t it?
BAILEY’S BUG by Jocie Brooke
(Continued from last week)
Bailey ignored the dark on the far side of the roads. Instead he watched the river of cars. There were two stretches of blacktop. On the side nearest them, the cars always came over a hill and down toward them. On the other side, the cars’ lights seemed to appear from out of nowhere as they raced each other up the hill without slowing a bit.
They never changed directions. Never. Best of all, what looked like a narrow park with grass and bushes was smack in the middle of the two roads. They could hide out there for a while to gather courage to chase across the other road into the darkness beyond.
Bailey stood up. “If we watch the top of that hill over there and wait until it’s very dark with no lights coming, we can make it to the middle.” Bailey pointed with his nose toward the hill.
“That we can, lad. Easy as jumping through hoops.” Skelley flashed a grin, then picked up his baton to trot toward the road.
Lucinda stayed where she was, staring at the road and beyond.
“Are you too afraid to try it, Lucinda?” Bailey asked.
“I’m not afraid of anything.” Lucinda snarled at him. “I’m thinking.”
“It’s good when you think.” Bailey lowered his back haunches to the ground. “Let me know when you’re through.”
“Dogs!” Lucinda turned to glare at him. Her eyes glowed green in the lights of a car flying down the hill toward where they sat. After the car passed, she stood up, her tail straight up in the air. Then as if to convince herself to move toward the road, she said, “I suppose there will be sunshine in the morning wherever I am.”
“Indeed, Miss Lucinda,” Skelley called to her over his shoulder. “They say there’s worlds of sunshine in the country. For a truth, I’ve been many a place, but I’ve never been anywhere that didn’t have its fair share of the sun’s light.”
(To be continued. Do you think they’ll get across the road? Read the whole story so far under the Bailey’s Bug link up top of my report here.)