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The Citizen, 1988-12-21, Page 13THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1988. PAGE 13. Weeks of work went into rural school concert prize winner True life Christmas story contest BY DOROTHY L. THORNTON Many of our older Christmas and pre-Christmas events have disap­ peared or changed. As we grow older, pleasurable memories of the past return to our minds at this special time of year. In reminiscing about the old Christmas concert in a one-roomed rural school, I recall an era that was very magical and heart warming. For weeks before the great performance, the bustle of prepara­ tions was seen and heard in the school house, and again in every home in the school section, as excited children told parents about the numbers being prepared. In early November, desks were pushed intoajumbled huddle, the piano was pushed into a new place, and a make-believe stage set up to create the proper setting for each number. This was done late in the day, after all the lessons were finished. In the preparation of the program itself, there was a teacher exchange of material: if your cast had performed thatparticularplay lastyear, you couldn’t repeat it for a few more years. Recitations were given out to be memorized and recited as only young orator s< with a rich imagina­ tion can do. According to their ability and knack for acting, the children were assigned roles in various numbers; Christmas verses were sung to familiar tunes as words were memorized, and a long program ensued. Teaching the curriculum and being up to date in the syllabus was farthest from both the mind of both the teacher and the exuberant children, who could only prepare and dream for that greatest of events that drew closer with each day’s practice. The greatest halls and stages of entertainment and perfor­ mances in all of Canada knew no more about production and creation than the teachers and pupils of rural schools in Ontario, or so we all thought. As a pupil and later a teacher, I remember the excitementand deliri­ um that effervesced during those busy weeks. A date was chosen early so each school section had a different night and could attend each other’s performances. Advertising was done by the pupils in art class. The posters were put up in local stores and on neighbouring fence posts. The older boys built an arbour for the flowers that the girls made, and where the “Alice Blue Gown” or some other drill would be perform­ ed, or maybe a teepee for the boys’ Indian Pow-Wow. The 10-foot evergreen tree, from a nearby woodlot, was delivered and put up by a generous father who took thistaskoneachyear. The joys of decorating and trimming were the excited pupils’ job, and event of keen participation. The red and green streamers and bells were strung up by the taller and more daring climbers, as the less adventuresome gave their opinions as to its straightness or proper position. By this time shy youngsters had blossomed into budding actors and actresses as they assumed roles in dialogues and play where they had an opportunity to be someone else. The day the trustees arrived at the door with a team and sleigh with the Th ose ©Merry Before all the holiday bustle begins, we’d like to wish you all a moment of quiet contentment and a season of jolly good fun! Fred & Betty Tillie & Staff BLYTH MINI MART 523-4486 Queen St., Blyth planks for the platform, a hysterical mood of excitement enveloped the whole crew, performers and stage hands alike. This edifice transform­ ed our one-room school into an artisticcentre, no less great than Carnegie Hall or the Royal Alexan­ dria Theatre. When the red curtains were hung and pulled, we all became part of the mystery of that great stage. By the evening of the concert, excitement had permeated into every home in the section. The rattle of milk pails, mixed with the pounding of rubber boots on a path through freshly fallen snow, was heard as children scurried to do their chores. The fact that they had not been asked or told to move, could only mean that it was the evening of their school’s Christmas concert. Last minute gifts and costumes were laid out, not to be forgotten. There were whispers of who might have gotten your name and where your gift might come from and what it might be. The family furthest from the school in each direction, started out early with team and sleigh, buffalo robes, hay and warm bricks, togather up a load of parents and children waiting at each gateway. The horses were warmly stabled at the barn nearest to the school. Sharply at eight o’clock, with butterflies in every stomach, the coal-oil lamps and gas lanterns shining their brightest, the red curtains were opened to reveal a crew of shining faces, all dressed in their Christmas best. A hush fell over the audience of proud parents, relatives and guests from other sections. A rapport between the pupils and teacher was very notice­ able on a special occasion like this. The master of ceremonies, chosen by the children in a democratic voice, announced the numbers, which always opened with a welcome recitation and Christmas chorus. The MC later filled in the waiting spaces with jokes and stories. In their tiny boxed space children, with only a lamp to see by, changed into costumes, and put up sets and backgrounds, moving as quietly and quickly as possible. There were calamities when the dishes for a dialogue crashed down or some­ one’s gown for the drill was lost. It Continued on page 14 LAWRIE T/ie Staff of Lawrie Decorating d DECORATING 188 Queen St. Blyth 523-4930 Wishes everyone a Let us help you with your decorating problems, we can save you time and money V We are a FULL SERVICE Paint and