Small Town Christmas I always liked Thanksgiving. It was kind of like the “Doorway to winter”. Once it was out of the way the road was clear for what was ahead. You would see Boonton’s town services department start to put up the Christmas decoration on each and every pole on Main street. Festive red, green and gold shining every night that bathed the streets in an uplifting array of Christmas cheer. In the time’s before political correctness became the norm. The schools would be prepping the Choruses and Bands for the shows that happened every year. Christmas music sang and played over and over till it was “perfect”. The water tower up on Sheep Hill was ablaze with the large star that could be viewed from any place in town. It showed the way home down the newly constructed Rt. 287. The church steeples bright beacons in the dark of night. Grace Lord Park would be turned into the North Pole complete with Santa’s home and a few of the Elves thrown in! All the evergreens lit with thousands of lights. Many of the favorite Christmas characters displayed around the park. I would have to pass by this magnet each and every day on the way home from school. (Santa caught on to this and cut back on my ‘nice points’) I think that’s why I never got that Pony!!! We lived on the Rockaway River. And behind my house on Lake Ave. as the river froze would become alive with action. The first frozen Pond area of the river would draw people from all parts of Boonton and Montville also Mt. Lakes and the Township. A bee hive of activity all flashing back and forth as their blades cut into the slick smooth expanse of ice. Sunrise to sunset hockey games would take over a good portion of the best ice. The boys bulling the girls out of the way and off the river sometimes. When this happened they used to go down to the Bocce courts below the wall by the tennis and basketball courts. They were flooded and turned into a rink for those who would not trust the rivers ice or the girl who would primp and prance in their pretty outfits and bright white ice skates. Each trying to be the next Peggy Flemings. Some of the girls would make little puffy pom-poms that would adorn their skates with a flash of color and a jingle of bells as they glided across the ice and through the gaze of the adoring boys trying not to let them see we were looking!! Newberrys 5 & 10 at the bottom Of Boonton Ave at Main St. was where I would shop for those hard to find Mommy & Daddy gifts. The best one’s were down in the basement and so out of reach for the short on money kid. Somehow I would always find something that would be just right for them. (anything as I look back was just right for them...) When I knew Christmas was right around the corner was the Party at the Fire Dept. they held each year. Food and fun were the norm. And Santa would give us each a single gift we could open early because we were “SO GOOD”!! I think the parents had the most fun opening the box’s of Chivas Regal and Seagram’s Seven……whatever that was??? We would on occasion get together and go door to door and sing Christmas carols. But my favorite pre-Christmas thing was the night ice skating. We would get a large fire going and sled down Mr. Ed’s hill or skate and scream till we were summoned home by the on and off flicking of the large spot light on the back of my house. 1 flick meant it was almost time. 2 or more in fast succession meant “NOW!! If she clicked it again and then left it off….oh boy were you in trouble!!! Into the house we would rumble stripping the clothes off at the foot of the stairs in our basement. Teeth chattering and lips blue we would huddle around the old steam radiators in the living room whining about how cold we were until the feeling returned to our hands and feet. Christmas day would come. We would exchange gifts and try on clothes. Dad would put together things and then we would be off to NaNa’s or MeMa’s for dinner. Life was so simple then for we kids. Little did we know what was around the corner?? I can’t even use Merry Christmas anymore in my emails for fear I might upset some one. I just hope my Small Town never gets too big for me to say, “Merry Christmas to all and to all Small Towns and Big Cities a good night”
Posted on: Fri, 19 Dec 2014 16:42:37 +0000
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