As many of you readers who have been following my stories know, I have done a lot of pieces on what has happened both in our local area and (especially) in the areas of western North Carolina with regard to what the hurricanes have done. To be honest with you, I had started to compile notes (and a picture) for this rather light-hearted story when I came across yet another video of water rescues by some wildlife officers in that “WNC” area.
But for now, I am keeping with my originally intended article about the “float” that mostly got my (and many other folks’) attention. Many weeks ago, I had contacted the Maglio family, who are the CEO and editors of this paper, asking for (monetary) donations to help get me up to the “WNC” flood-ravaged area. A short time after my inquiry, Mr. Rocco Maglio contacted me, telling me that he wanted to come by with the needed funds. It was dark when he rolled up on the property, but the lights that we had on showed many of the vehicles and trailers parked on our compound. While we were talking, Rocco happened to glance over at our flatbed trailer and mentioned that they could REALLY USE a trailer (like the one he was looking at) for the upcoming Christmas parade. I saw no problem with that, other than it needed a couple hundred dollars of lumber (for main deck and side rail) support. An agreement was made, and once I returned from the trip up north (and got rid of the “critter” that caused my head to feel like it wanted to explode), it was time to make good on the promise that I made. Sometime later, Mr. Maglio came over, and with the help of his son, Max, we hooked on to the trailer and went right across the street (from our village entrance) to the Lowes ‘big box” hardware center.
The build went well, and the trailer was ready for “dressing up!” This last Saturday, Dec. 14th, we met early just outside of the main enclosed staging area and started taping and stapling all kinds of shiny Christmas decorations onto the unit. As time passed, I could see that many more vehicles (with their trailers) were arriving, so it was decided that we load all the rest of the gear onto both the float and the truck, and we proceeded to get into our “appointed lane.” Once we were able to get all the decorations in place, I was able to do some looking around at the many different designs and setups (that were within my view). I know that I only saw a fraction of what was to be in the parade, as my church’s float was numbered in the 50’s (and we were number 102)!
Now, the Maglio Family brought with them a small hand-pulled wagon, and at one point in the morning, they put their two pet dogs (Corgis) in that wagon. It was amazing how many of the people who were passing back and forth between the lanes of floats stopped to admire (and pet) the dogs. I must admit that I need to put a little extra historical context in here. These dogs, named Connie and Benjamin (after Benjamin Franklin, a patriot and inventor of one of the printing presses), came from the Corgi litter of one of my sister’s (and her family’s) stock. Now as I wanted to do a story (with the parade theme as its base), I knew that there would be a lot of talk (and pictures) of some really beautiful float creations, and I was going to need something with a little “twist.” So, how much smaller can you get than this picture of these delightful dogs! The more I viewed the many creations along the route, the more my mind was made up. My favorite “pull behind” display was going to be the little dogs in the small wagon. Because small blessings are still blessings, nonetheless!
I hope that you all have a Merry Christmas and a blessed holiday season!
Steve Goodwin is a recently retired Christian conservative veteran (of the U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Division), who still feels that “duty to country” did not end when the military uniform got hung up. He and his wife Cecelia live on the edge of a beautifully wooded tract of land just south of the bypass, and are involved in not only church activities, but also attend school board meetings and local community action events as well.
